Liquid Confidence
by abbyja
Summary: AU as always. Sophie is nineteen and living with her best friends Laura and Craig. Things become a little complicated when she meets Sian for the second time.
1. Chapter 1

"Yeah yeah, I'll be sure to call you." muttered the brunette, walking with a tall, beautiful blonde towards the door as she tried to ignore the sniggering of her friends in the living room.

As she reached the door way, the blonde turned and looked at the other girl sceptically, "You'll call soon yeah?"

"Sure, I'll get right on it. Don't worry." agreed the brunette, offering a convincing smile as she reached for the handle and tugged the door open before nodding towards the hall way, "So I'll see you later?"

Seemingly taking the hint, the blonde nodded as she leant forward and placed a chaste kiss on the other girl before pulling back with a smile and heading outside.

Letting out a long sigh, the brunette slammed the door shut and leant against it, "And they never saw her again."

"Have you ever considered Sophie that maybe shagging girls **here **and never calling them again is a bad idea?" asked a girl from the sofa, having been watching her friend with amusement as she tried to banish her latest conquest. "I mean … if you don't call … they can always come find you."

Sophie shrugged, kicking herself up from the door as she headed towards the kitchen, "At which point I'll make an excuse and quickly send them on their way again."

"And who said romance was dead? … So … tell us about her then. Where'd you find this one?" pushed the red head from the sofa as Sophie poured herself a bowl of cereal, adding a generous amount of milk before settling beside her friends and shovelling a spoonful into her mouth.

"At the Arc last night," mumbled Sophie as she chewed on her cereal, "Name's Holly. She was nice."

"Just not nice enough eh?"

Sophie grinned as she munched on another mouthful of cereal, "She was good in bed Laura, I'll give her that."

"Webster … you're disgraceful." chuckled a brown haired boy sprawled out across the arm chair.

"What?" asked Sophie, raising her eyebrows at her friend, "Like you're any better."

Raising his hands defensively, he stared wide-eyed back at Sophie, "I'm offended."

"Craig … just … don't even object." laughed Laura, shaking her head at her friend's offence, "You two are terrible."

Pointing her spoon at Laura, Sophie cocked an eyebrow and smirked, "Oh the lady thinks just cause she's in a relationship now, she can judge us."

"Well I **am **in a relationship." stated Laura, "But that doesn't change anything, I've always judged you."

Sophie laughed, "You make a good point."

Sophie Webster was notorious amongst her circle of friends for her behaviour towards women. She'd earned quite a reputation at the clubs for her womanizing ways and there didn't seem to be a lesbian in Manchester who didn't know Sophie at least via association. Despite her motto of loving and leaving them, it didn't seem to stop women from flocking to her like a moth to a flame and as soon as the brunette swept her long, wavy hair over her shoulder, flashed her knowing smirk and gave a girl a subtle nod, it wasn't long before they were putty in her hands and inevitably ended up right where she wanted them: back at her flat in her bed.

Regardless of her night time activities, Sophie was still just a regular young woman. At the age of nineteen she was just another student at Manchester university trying their best to scrape through their assignments with anything that could be classed as a passable grade. However as with her flat mates Craig and Laura, extra curricular activity including drinking too much alcohol, having sex and partying often lead to university work falling by the wayside and ultimately being deemed far less important than having fun.

Laura Hampton and Craig Bennison were the two people Sophie classed as her best friends. The short red-haired girl having become one of the people who's company she enjoyed the most, right from their first encounter. Having met at a club during freshers week and instantly hitting it off, the pair and quickly became inseparable.

Upon meeting in a lecture when both were looking rather worse for wear after a heavy night of drinking, it seemed obvious that Craig and Sophie would become good friends. Both were like the same person in different bodies as the older lad with his short, spiky hair, cheeky grin and undeniable charm and good looks was always just as lucky as Sophie with female attention.

After just a few weeks at university, the three of them had become as close as family and would regularly hit the clubs together in a bid to drink far too much and see who could be the first to pick up a girl. The friends had earned a reputation without even trying and it wasn't difficult to see why they had been drawn to one another.

As it stood, they had all just started their second year of university and had managed to get a flat together. It was big enough and was cost just the right amount to ensure that they could manage to pay the rent using their student loan with adequate funds left over to pay for alcohol. The way the three friends saw it, they were pretty much living the student dream.

"So when do we get to meet your lovely lady then?" asked Sophie, lifting her bowl to her lips and slurping the remains of the milk into her mouth in a rather unladylike manner.

"Nice Webster." stated Laura, scrunching up her nose as Sophie wiped at her mouth with the back of her hand before placing the bowl down on the coffee table, "Well I was actually thinking of inviting her over tonight."

"Ooooo she's in for a grilling." teased Craig, rubbing his hands together with a smirk earning him a laugh from Sophie and a scowl from Laura.

Frowning at the older boy, Laura shook her head, "Please be nice … I really like this one."

"You mean just like you really liked Mandy … or Lauren … or Sarah?" asked Sophie, smirking at the red head beside her, "You go through girlfriends like I go through toilet paper."

"Says the biggest slut in Manchester."

Craig clapped his hands together and snorted out a laugh, "Oooo burn."

"Excuse me?" protested Sophie, glaring back at her friend, "Slut? Bit fucking harsh don't you think."

"But fair." added Craig with a grin.

Turning towards Craig, Sophie shot him a death glare, "Shut it Benno."

"No but seriously mate, when do we get to meet her?" asked Craig, "You've been keeping the details of this one close to your chest."

Laura shrugged, "I really like her … she's kinda different than any of the others. Really smart, witty, funny … not to mention gorgeous."

"Alright roll your tongue back in." teased Sophie, laying back on the arm of the couch as she nudged Laura playfully with her foot, "Invite her round for some drinks tonight and we'll all get to know each other."

"You guys promise you'll play nice?" asked Laura, looking between the pair seriously.

Crossing his finger over his chest, Craig nodded, "Cross my heart."

Sophie nodded her head in agreement as she stood up from the couch, grabbing her bowl from the table as she headed towards the sink, "Yeah me too … I won't even try to fuck her."

Unable to hold it in, both Sophie and Craig blurted out a laugh as Laura picked up a cushion from the sofa and launched it at Sophie's head, the brunette ducking just in time before shooting her friend a grin.

"What? I said I **won't**." chuckled Sophie.

…

As a soft knock on the door sounded through the flat, both Sophie and Craig exchanged grins on the sofa. The pair had a can of lager clutched between their hands, both with their legs crossed over and feet resting on the coffee table as they watched the football match on the television avidly. Their grins grew considerably in size as Laura dashed through from her bedroom towards the door.

Turning to her friends as she reached the doorway, the red-head gave them both a pleading look, "Please please please **please **be nice."

Sophie rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her drink as she managed to tear her eyes away from the television screen to meet Laura's gaze, "Will you calm down? It's just a bird … we're not gonna treat her like some kind of monster. We **can** be nice you know?"

Nudging the brunette, Craig nodded his head in agreement, "To be quite honest I'm offended you think so little of us that we'd be horrible."

"Just open the bloody door Laura." encouraged Sophie, her eyes darting back to the screen as Laura inhaled deeply before turning to face the door.

As her hand gripped the handle, Laura quickly pulled the door open before she had a chance to change her mind, shooting the girl on the other side a wide smile.

"Hey." greeted the girl, leaning forward to give the red-head a peck on the lips before pulling back and raising the bottle of wine in her hand, "I brought wine."

"We like her already!" piped up Craig from the sofa, his eyes remaining firmly glued to the screen as he and Sophie let out a small chuckle.

Laura's smile broadened at Craig's remark and even the girl at the door seemed to relax somewhat, "Come on in."

Nodding and smiling gratefully, the girl stepped through the threshold to the flat, closing the door behind her as Laura stopped in front of the sofa and looked at Sophie and Craig expectantly.

"Guys?" started Laura, looking between the pair on the sofa expectantly as they shouted something at the screen, "Guys?"

The girl stood awkwardly behind Laura, biting down on her lip as she watched Sophie and Craig wave their hands around animatedly, shouting abuse at one of the players on the screen in disbelief.

"Oi!" shouted Laura, picking up one of the empty cans from the table and throwing it at her friends who both looked up and frowned.

"What the fuck was that for?" asked Sophie, lifting the can up from one of the cushions and tossing it back on to the coffee table, "We're trying to watch something here."

Laura rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest as she regarded Sophie and Craig with an unimpressed look, "Well you're being bloody rude!"

"Mate there's only like ten minutes left, just go get a drink and it'll be done soon." stated Craig, taking a large gulp from his can before placing it down on the table, "And yeah, I'd love another beer, thanks."

Raising her can in the air, Sophie nodded her head, "Yeah a fresh can would be frigging sweet."

"You're not getting anything until you stop staring at that screen!" snapped Laura, the obvious irritation in her voice causing Sophie and Craig to reluctantly tear their gaze away from the football match and look across to the red head stood in front of them.

"Guys …" started Laura as Sophie took a large swig of her drink to finish it off, "This is my girlfriend … Sian."

As Sophie's gaze flickered to the other girl she was unable to stop herself from taking a sharp intake of breath and choking slightly on the liquid that was travelling down her throat.

"You alright Webster?" laughed Craig, patting the brunette on the back as she cleared her throat and swallowed hard.

Nodding her head, Sophie rubbed at her throat, "Yeah, just … went down the wrong way is all."

Sophie was unable to stop herself from staring at the girl in front of her. She was most certainly a sight to behold and possibly one of the most naturally stunning women Sophie had ever laid eyes on. Even stood in just a pair of jeans and a loose fitting t shirt, she looked a vision of beauty and the brunette had to run her tongue over her lips in a bid to get some kind of moisture in to her mouth. Looking at the girl in front of her, her long blonde hair tumbling over her shoulders, a slight smirk tugging at her lips and the sparkle in her bright blue eyes, Sophie knew what Sian was thinking. She knew the blonde recognised her. There was one reason and one reason alone that the two girls knew each other and unbeknownst to her friends, Sian wasn't merely Laura's girlfriend. She was the only girl who had ever turned Sophie Webster down.


	2. Chapter 2

"So just … take a seat and I'll crack this open." suggested Laura, pointing towards the sofa and raising the bottle of wine in the air.

Nodding her head and giving her girlfriend a smile, Sian took a few steps towards the couch, settling into the cushions as she followed Sophie and Craig's line of sight.

"So who're we watching?" asked Sian, trying to make some kind of conversation despite the lack of attention she was receiving from the pair.

"United." answered Sophie, her eyes remaining firmly glued to the screen for fear of looking directly at Sian.

Sian looked up at the score in the top corner and let out a chuckle, "Well it's a good job they're winning, their performance against City last week was appalling, I've never screamed at a television so much in my life."

Both Sophie and Craig slowly turned their heads as Sian finished speaking, a look of astonishment and slight bemusement gracing their features as they set eyes on Sian who was half watching the match, half looking back at them. From the second Sian had entered their flat, the blonde hadn't exactly given off the impression of being a football fan, especially not an avid one and it had taken Sophie and Craig aback slightly.

Swallowing hard and trying to ignore the fact the new information made Sian even more attractive in her eyes, Sophie raised her eyebrows, "You like football then?"

Sian ran her tongue over her lips and nodded, "Does that surprise you?"

Before Sophie had a chance to offer the blonde a reply, Laura stepped back into the living room, handing a glass of wine over to Sian who took it gratefully.

"Full of surprises aren't you babe?" stated Laura with a grin.

"Oh definitely." agreed Sian, taking a large gulp of her wine before setting the glass down on the coffee table.

A few minutes passed by and the full time whistle sounded causing both Sophie and Craig to exchange a high five at the result before they both stood up to grab a can from the fridge.

"Soooo …" started Craig, settling back on to the sofa and turning to face the new arrival. "Sian."

"That's me." Sian shot the older boy a smile, picking her wine up from the table and taking a sip, "Is this the part where you hit me with a load of questions to make sure I'm not some kind of axe wielding maniac?"

Craig couldn't help but chuckle, "If that's what usually happens when you meet your girlfriend's mates then I feel you're not quite giving off the right first impression."

"Can't be having that," started Sian, her eyes deliberately darting towards Sophie, "First impressions are everything, don't you think?"

Clearing her throat, Sophie nodded weakly and took a large gulp from her can, "Definitely."

"So how did you guys meet then?" asked Craig, the maintained eye contact and slight awkwardness between the other two girls going unnoticed as Sian turned back to face him with a smile.

"Sian works at Sinners in town and you know how much I love that bar," began Laura, grinning at her friends, "So we started chatting the last few times I'd been in and really hit it off."

Turning to face the red-head, Sian smirked, "The free drinks probably helped."

"You work at a bar and can give out free drinks?" asked Craig, beaming at the blonde beside him, "You've certainly won me over."

"Well I only give out free drinks to people I like." teased Sian, her eyes darting back to Sophie briefly, "And trust me there's a lot of sleaze balls out there who try to hit on you over the bar."

Laughing, Laura pointed her finger at Sophie teasingly, "Guilty."

Sian was unable to stop her smirk growing in size as a blush started to form on Sophie's face and she looked down at the can in her lap. "I take it Sophie's a fan of hitting on the bartenders then, eh?"

Craig snorted out a laugh, "Understatement. I'm surprised you haven't had to fend off her advances."

"I'll be sure to watch my back." teased Sian, biting down on her lip as her eyes flicking back to Sophie and flashed the brunette a wink.

"I'll just err …" Sophie cleared her throat, standing up from her seat and pointing towards the kitchen, "Another drink."

Sophie rested her hands against the kitchen counter tops, letting out a long sigh as she closed her eyes and tried to compose herself. She couldn't understand why Sian's presence was bothering her so much. Sure she'd had to face girls in the past that wouldn't take no for an answer, or she'd have to tolerate an awkward encounter with a girl who she'd had a one night stand with but this was different. Something about Sian was different. When Sophie had leant against the bar in Sinners and flashed the blonde her trademark winning smile, Sian had merely shrugged it off, seemingly unfazed by Sophie's charms. However, instead of irritating Sophie no end, the fact Sian was so immune to her flirting only served to interest the brunette further. There was no denying that Sophie loved the attention she got from girls, how just a few words and a confident grin could have them weak at the knees but if there was one thing Sophie Webster loved, it was a challenge and when it came to women the challenges were never too trying. Sian however, Sian had been a challenge and Sophie couldn't shake her fascination with the blonde.

"You alright?"

Spinning on the spot, Sophie leant back against the counter as she set eyes on the girl in front of her, folding her arms across her chest defensively.

"Yeah just … getting a drink."

Sian chuckled, stepping towards the fridge and opening the door as she took out her bottle of wine and a can of beer.

"Don't think you're gonna find one stood there Soph." teased Sian, passing the can over to Sophie.

Taking the object from Sian, Sophie stared down at the can in her hands and furrowed her brow. She mulled over her thoughts for just a few seconds before looking up at Sian who was watching her carefully.

"Do you …"

Sian smirked, "Remember you hitting on me?"

"Yeah … that." muttered Sophie, fidgeting with the can in her hands as she pursed her lips, "Are you gonna … well … have you … does Laura know?"

Chuckling at Sophie fumbling over her words, Sian took a step closer to the brunette, "Why would she know? It's not like I've told her about everyone who's ever tried it on with me."

"Are you gonna tell her?" asked Sophie.

Sian shrugged, "Why does she need to know? It's nothing … you tried it on … I said no … that's all there is to it."

A small smile started to tug at Sophie's lips at Sian's words, "Yeah … don't remind me that you said no."

Patting the brunette on the shoulder, Sian turned towards the living room with a grin, "Nothing personal Soph … Although A for effort, you certainly went all out to charm me."

"Mind if I ask why it didn't work?" asked Sophie, taking Sian slightly by surprise.

Sian considered the question for a second before pulling a face and shrugging, "Same reason I turn most people down who hit on me at work."

After a small pause, Sophie realised Sian wasn't about to elaborate and frowned, "What's that then?"

"Cause they're only hitting on me for one reason." answered Sian, raising the bottle of wine and gesturing towards it, "Liquid confidence."

"I wasn't even drunk." muttered Sophie with a frown.

"Sometimes one drink's all you need." stated Sian as a smirk grew on face, "Plus … I've heard all about you Sophie Webster."

With that, Sian grinned a final time before turning her back on the brunette as she headed back into the living room towards her girlfriend and Craig.

"You were a while." stated Laura, smiling gratefully as Sian handed over the bottle of wine and she began refilling their glasses.

Sian nodded, smiling at Sophie as she re-entered the living room and settled back into the couch, "Was just telling Sophie about how working in a bar has ensured I've heard all about her reputation."

"Oh yeah?" asked Craig, letting out a laugh as he noticed the discomfort on Sophie's face, "Surprised you haven't seen her in action."

"Yeah our Sophie's notorious … you should surely have seen her about, breaking ladies hearts and such." teased Laura, Sophie's obvious uneasiness only serving to amuse her further.

Craig laughed, "You should have seen her this morning trying to dispose of this blonde lass … She actually believed Sophie was gonna call her. Poor girl."

Sian turned to Sophie, biting down on her lip to try and suppress a grin at Sophie's tinged pink cheeks as she took an interest in her lap, "I'm sure I've probably seen her around before."

"Can we stop talking about this now?" muttered Sophie, itching the back of her neck uncomfortably under Sian's gaze.

Nudging her girlfriend with her foot, Laura nodded at Sophie, "See she might be confident and cocky when she's hitting on some girl in a bar but take her out of her comfort zone and she goes all shy and embarrassed."

"It's not that …" objected Sophie, scrunching up her nose at her friend's words, "It's just I don't wanna talk about it … there's more to me than that and I don't want that to be what everyone thinks about me."

Sian smiled genuinely, her smirk disappearing somewhat at Sophie's words, "Well come on then Soph … what do you suggest we do for fun if we're not gonna discuss your antics?"

Sophie closed one of her eyes for a second, frowning as she tried to think of a good suggestion although her mind was mostly clouded with the fact Sian wouldn't stop calling her Soph and it was making her head spin.

"I'm all for just putting a film on or something." stated Sophie, slouching back in to the couch cushions and looking across at whatever was on the television screen.

She knew she was coming across as rude and she knew she was going to get a grilling from Laura later for her behaviour but she didn't care. Something about Sian made Sophie lose her cool and the brunette refused to accept it was merely the fact she had been turned down by her. There was something else. Something Sophie couldn't quite put her finger on. Despite not knowing what it was, Sophie couldn't deny she was intrigued by it and that alone made Sophie feel incredibly uncomfortable. Sian was dating her best friend and under no circumstances would Sophie allow herself to be drawn into any kind of interest in Sian that wasn't completely, one hundred percent platonic. She was sure she'd get used to the way things were and had convinced herself that her attitude towards Sian that evening was merely the shock of the way things had turned out and given enough time, she would be able to get along with her friend's girlfriend just fine. However, for now, it wasn't easy to endure being in the same room as the blonde let alone entertain a conversation with her.

Laura and Craig had both suggested Sian pick a film as she was a guest and Sophie had merely grunted her agreement. It wasn't going unnoticed by Sian that Sophie didn't seem to be herself. Despite it being the first time she'd officially 'met' Sophie, she'd of course seen her in the bar and knew the brunette as an out going, confident, energetic person, a stark contrast to the moody, quiet girl beside her on the couch. However, not wanting to draw attention to Sophie's seemingly foul mood, Sian had slipped a DVD into the player and settled back on the couch, trying her hardest to keep a pleasant atmosphere in the room as she chatted with Laura and Craig.

About half way through the film, Sophie felt the weight shift in the couch and as Sian's thigh brushed against her own, she was unable to stop herself from jumping to her feet and clearing her throat awkwardly.

"I'm gonna … head to bed." mumbled Sophie, itching the back of her neck uncomfortably as she threw her empty can in the direction of the bin.

Looking at her watch, Laura frowned up at her friend, "Webster it's like ten o clock."

"Yeah what's up?" pressed Craig, his frown matching that of the red-head, "You're practically nocturnal most nights."

"Sorry guys … I'll be more fun next time." stated Sophie, a forced smile gracing her features as she switched her gaze towards the blonde on the sofa, "Was nice meeting you Sian … sorry I haven't been very … talkative tonight."

Sian nodded her head and smiled, "Maybe next time we can get to know each other a bit better … I'd like to find out what Sophie Webster is really like when she's not picking up girls in bars."

Sophie snorted out a laugh, "I'm not sure she's as fun."

Saying her good nights to the rest of the group, Sophie let out a long sigh once she finally crossed the threshold to her bedroom and flopped down onto the mattress.

"What are the fucking chances." muttered Sophie under her breath as she raised her arms, resting her hands behind her head as she lay back on them and closed her eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

Rolling out of bed and perching on the side of the mattress the next morning, Sophie let out a satisfied groan as she raised her arms in the air and stretched out her body. The smell of bacon wafting through from the kitchen was making her mouth water and she could think of nothing she desired more than a bacon buttie.

As she rose to her feet, it surprised the brunette how good of a mood she was in given the previous night's events. She hadn't truly believed her own suggestion that a nights sleep to get over the shock would make everything seem better but much to her surprise it had. She was sure she could deal with Sian's presence around the flat, even enjoy it and despite their previous encounter in the bar, Sophie knew neither her nor Sian intended to dwell on the past.

As Sophie shuffled into the kitchen, she inhaled deeply once the scent of the bacon hit her, a smile quickly spreading across her face.

"I'll have a bacon buttie with tonnes of brown sauce, thanks." ordered Sophie playfully, slouching into a chair at the kitchen table and reaching for the stack of mail.

"Last I checked I was a barmaid not a chef."

At the sound of a voice she wasn't expecting, Sophie's head shot up from the pile of letters and leaflets she was sorting through and frowned at the girl stood in front of the oven.

"Sorry I didn't realise it was you." muttered Sophie, "I thought I heard you leave last night."

Sian grinned, flipping a piece of bacon over in the pan, "Sorry to disappoint you."

Sophie's eyes scanned over Sian's body, from her bare, tanned legs up to the white baggy t shirt that was barely covering her bum.

"Like what you see?" teased Sian, cocking an eyebrow at Sophie.

Sophie couldn't help but grin as she picked up a letter and started to read through it, "Not gonna lie blondie … I rather do."

"You're far happier than you were last night." stated Sian, raising her eyebrows expectantly at the brunette.

"You weren't in your underwear last night." returned Sophie, her eyes remaining firmly glued to the letter in her hand.

Shaking her head as she turned back to the bacon, Sian lay a few more slices down in the pan, "So a bacon buttie with brown sauce was it?"

"You don't have to make it really." stated Sophie, "Had it been Laura I'd have made her do it … but … you're new so you don't have to be my slave quite yet."

"I don't mind making you a sandwich Sophie." chuckled Sian as she lay out a couple slices of bread on the counter.

Slouching back in her chair, Sophie watched the blonde carefully and grinned, "So my charm isn't completely wasted on you then? I can still get you to make breakfast for me."

Sian turned and narrowed her eyes playfully at Sophie, "I think it's more to do with my good nature than your charms."

"You sure know how to dent a girl's ego you know that?"

"To be brutally honest Soph, I think you could do with being brought down a peg or two." teased Sian, lifting the bacon out of the pan and placing it on the bread. Squirting a small amount of sauce on the bread, the blonde put the sandwich together before placing it down in front of Sophie. "There you go your majesty."

"Cheers … not just a pretty face are you?" Sophie grinned up at the blonde as she picked up her sandwich and took a large bite.

"Yeah yeah …" sighed Sian, shaking her head as she tried to suppress a smile, "I'll see you later yeah."

Flashing Sian a wink as she turned to leave, Sophie nodded, "If you're lucky."

…

"What you doing today then?" asked Laura, stepping into the living room to find Sophie sprawled out across the length of it with her eyes glued to the television.

Sophie shrugged, "This."

"Productive." muttered Laura, picking up her coat from the side of the sofa and pulling it on. "Wanna join me and Sian for a trip into town?"

"I'd really rather not." mumbled Sophie, raising her arms and resting them behind her head.

Laura frowned, "Do you not like Sian or something?"

Snapping her head away from the television, Sophie looked at her friend in confusion, "How did you get that from what I just said?"

"She better like me after I made her breakfast." piped up Sian, grinning down at the brunette as she stood beside her girlfriend and pulled on a leather jacket, "I don't do that for just anyone."

Sophie shrugged, "You're alright I guess."

Leaning forward, Laura swatted Sophie across her legs and scowled, "Sophie!"

"Kidding!" stated Sophie, turning her attention back to the television.

Nudging Sophie's legs again, Laura folded her arms, "Well are you gonna come to Sinners tonight for a few drinks?"

"Come on Laura, you know better than that." started Sophie, her gaze switching to the red-head, "Of course I am."

Laura laughed, picking her handbag up from the sofa, "Alright Webby, see you tonight then."

…

"Two whiskeys and coke please gorgeous." Sophie winked across the bar, flashing the blonde a grin as she rolled her eyes.

Placing her hands on her hips, Sian stared back at Sophie with a look that suggested she was both unimpressed and amused, "So the fact I'm dating your best friend doesn't stop you hitting on me?"

"Whoa!" Sophie held her hands up defensively, "Can a girl not observe that you're a rather attractive woman without getting accused of making a move?"

"Let me ask you something Sophie," started Sian, folding her arms and resting on the bar as she leant closer to the brunette, "It didn't work on me last time so why would it work this time?"

Sophie shook her head with a grin, "You sure think highly of yourself don't you? … You see Sian my dear, there's a reason I ordered two drinks.", Sophie nodded towards a blonde haired girl dancing in the far corner of the club, "I've already pulled."

Despite herself, Sian couldn't help her jaw from dropping slightly as she looked down at her watch and then back up at the girl in front of her who was grinning smugly, "You've only been in here ten minutes!"

"Sian Sian Sian…" sighed Sophie, shaking her head from side to side, "**Some **girls know a good thing when they see it."

"You're unbelievable." muttered Sian, standing up straight with her arms remaining firmly folded across her chest.

Sophie chuckled, "I'm flattered you think so … however, could you be a sweetheart and grab me my drinks please?"

Suddenly realised she'd forgotten all about the fact she was meant to be working and Sophie still needed drinks, Sian mumbled an apology as she starting mixing two drinks together. After a minute or two, Sian placed the two drinks down on the bar, sliding them across to Sophie.

"How much?" asked Sophie, pulling her wallet out of her back pocket.

"They're on me." stated Sian, giving Sophie a smile as she rested against the bar.

Sophie cocked an eyebrow, "You sure?"

Receiving only a small nod from the blonde, Sophie smiled back and picked up her drinks, "Beginning to think you might have a bit of a soft spot for me."

"You wish." shot Sian, giving Sophie a final look as the brunette turned her back and headed over towards the girl in the corner of the bar.

"She's not giving you too much grief is she?"

Sian turned on the spot to see Laura arriving at the opposite end of the bar, the red-head watching as her friend handed one of the drinks to her conquest of the night.

"Who?" asked Sian, frowning as she took a few steps closer to her girlfriend.

Laura nodded in the direction of her friend, "Sophie."

"Why would she be giving me grief?" asked Sian, genuinely interested in what Laura could have to say.

Letting out a sigh, Laura smiled as she shifted her gaze from Sophie back towards the blonde at the bar, "God knows I love her but she can be a bit … I dunno. She means well and she's only messing but she tends to inadvertently flirt with any girl in her presence."

"Oh … right." mumbled Sian, shooting a quick glance at Sophie before shrugging, "No it's fine … can't say I've noticed anything."

Laura smiled, leaning forward and resting her hand on top of Sian's as she gave it a gentle squeeze, "Well if she does give you any bother, just do what the rest of us do and tell her to fuck off and pack it in."

Sian chuckled, gripping her girlfriend's hand and nodding, "I'll be sure to bear that in mind."

…

The clock had just struck four o clock in the morning as Sophie burst through the door to her flat, her lips firmly attached to the blonde girl's from earlier in the evening as she fumbled to close the door behind her. Both girls were a little tipsy, their slightly blurred vision and uncoordinated limbs making it ever more difficult to close the door and safely make it through the living room. The task was made considerably more difficult as both girls continued to insistently kiss one another, Sophie's hands tugging at any item of clothing she could grasp in an eager bid to get the other girl undressed and into her bed as quickly as possible.

However, as Sophie stumbled over a pair of shoes by the doorway, the sound of someone clearing their throat snapped her out of her lust induced daze and she quickly broke the kiss to locate the source of the sound.

Squinting her eyes in a bid to make out the figure in the darkness, Sophie frowned as she noticed someone sipping on a glass of water in the kitchen, "Laura?"

The girl with Sophie didn't seem to care that they were not alone and kept her hands on the brunette's body, attaching her lips to Sophie's jaw line as she began to kiss and nibble the skin there. In her slightly drunken state, Sophie didn't try too hard to shrug the girl off and couldn't help but giggle a little.

"Sorry I was just getting a drink." muttered Sian, placing her glass down on the counter as she stepped into the somewhat brighter living room so that Sophie could finally make out who the person in front of her was.

"Jesus do you live here now or something?" asked Sophie, taking the other girl's hands in her own as she removed them from her waist and held onto them.

Sian frowned, "Geez sorry for inconveniencing you."

"Whoa okay I'm sorry," started Sophie, turning to the relentless blonde beside her and pushing her in the direction of the hall way, "Just go down to my bedroom babe, first door on the right, I'll only be a minute."

As the girl staggered towards the bedroom, resting her hand against the wall as she occasionally stumbled in her drunken state, Sian raised her eyebrows and looked back at the brunette in front of her, "Nice catch Soph."

"Well you could always come join us. There's plenty of me to go around." stated Sophie.

Sian rolled her eyes, letting out a sigh as she walked towards Laura's bedroom, "Goodnight Sophie."

"Wait wait wait." protested Sophie, reaching for Sian's wrist and stopping the blonde from walking away, "Why do you hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you, I just wanna go to bed." sighed Sian, rubbing her forehead and closing her eyes, "Plus you wouldn't wanna keep whatever her name is waiting."

Scrunching up her nose, Sophie's furrowed her eyebrows as she thought for a second, "Jesus … what the fuck is her name."

Shaking her head, Sian pulled her arm from Sophie's grip, "Seriously … goodnight Sophie."

"G'night." muttered Sophie, inhaling deeply as she tried to see straight in order to make it to her bedroom.

The brunette rested against the doorframe as she composed herself for entertaining company. Not only could she not remember the girls name, she could tell she was a drunken mess and didn't particularly want to deal with that. Sophie had brought her back for one reason and one reason alone and it most certainly was not to hold her hair back over the toilet bowl. Letting out a final sigh, Sophie broke out in a smile as she pushed open the door and saw the girl lay across her bed and fortunately awake.

"What took you so long?" questioned the blonde as Sophie closed the door behind her.

Sophie shook her head, "Nothing, now where were we?"


	4. Chapter 4

The week seemed to have passed by as a surreal blur to Sophie. Even though it had been her own life and her own actions, the state of near unconsciousness that she drank herself into every night ensured that every experience became an alcohol induced haze of uncertainty and confusion. Seven days had passed and seven girls had been and gone from her flat although Sophie couldn't be one hundred percent on the actual activities that had transpired in her bedroom and the names and faces of the girls were but a distant memory to her.

Laura had watched with concern from either the corner of the bar as Sophie slammed another shot or when the brunette would surface from her bedroom, shooing another girl from the flat before crawling back into bed in a darkened room. In the past her actions could have been considered somewhat promiscuous but even for Sophie, she seemed to be going over the top with her night time activities. Her friends could tell that the brunette lacked her usual air of charisma and excitement that drew girls to her. There was no denying that Sophie was an attractive girl but there was something intriguing about her that always seemed to seal the deal with any woman she wished to bring back to her flat that night. However, in the recent week it seemed to be the alcohol that was fuelling her encounters and both Craig and Laura couldn't help but feel concerned for their friend's behaviour.

As it was, Sophie was lay face down on the couch, her eyes tightly closed in a bid to keep any daylight from entering them. Her hair was messy and sprawled across the sofa cushions and her make up from the previous night was smudged across her eyes adding to her dishevelled appearance. Even Sophie couldn't think up a rational explanation for her recent behaviour. She knew she was just a few steps away from going off the rails and her body was screaming at her to take a breather and let it recover. The only way Sophie could describe her feelings was fed up. She was fed up of using girls for one thing, fed up of being seen as nothing but a womanizer and most importantly, she was fed up of not knowing why in just a few encounters, a certain blonde had managed to get inside her head and make her question everything about herself. Despite what it might look like, Sophie Webster did not have feelings for Sian. She had went over that in her head time and time again and she knew that even though the blonde was attractive and certainly interesting, she didn't want anything from her. However, Sian had managed to get under Sophie's skin in a way no other girl had and the brunette was left to question how it was that her usual air of confidence had been knocked out of her due to the rejection she'd received from Sian.

Over the past week, Sophie had barely seen the blonde aside from a few brief meetings as she passed through the living room or saw her working at the bar. She couldn't be certain what effect Sian was having on her, but Sophie was well aware it was something. Sophie Webster had arrogance down to a science and certainly didn't lack the ability to approach a girl, however, regardless of whether Sian was actually watching her from the bar or not, Sophie found herself unable to gather the self-assurance to go chat to a girl under Sian's watchful eye and thus one confidence shot turned in to several and it wasn't long until both her and her conquest were severely worse for wear and heading back to the brunette's flat.

The irony that it was her own behaviour that was annoying her yet the one thing she was using to numb the pain hadn't passed Sophie by, yet she was unable to think of any other solution to her problems that to drink herself silly and lose herself in the company her night time guests would supply her.

Sophie let out a groan as she rubbed at her forehead, unable to think clearly when her head was pounding so badly. Her friend's didn't seem to care about the brunette's hungover state and as they set foot in the living room and stopped in front of the sofa, a brief kick to Sophie's legs followed by another when Sophie still didn't move clearly expressed that.

"What do you want." grumbled Sophie, flopping on to her back and covering her face with her hands.

Laura shook her head and folded her arms across her chest, "This is getting ridiculous even for you Webster."

"What is?" muttered Sophie, feigning innocence.

"Soph this flat has become walk of shame central. I've lost count of how many girls have been in and out of here." started Craig, looking down at the brunette, "You need to pull yourself together mate. Has something happened?"

Finally lowering her hands and opening her eyes, Sophie looked back at the spiky-haired boy and cocked an eyebrow, "Like what?"

"I dunno …" mumbled Craig, "But it's like you've gone into self destruct mode."

Sitting down beside her friend, Laura rested her hand on Sophie's leg and smiled sympathetically, "Are you upset about something? Has someone done something to you?"

'_Your girlfriend turned me down several weeks ago at the bar and now I can't stop wondering why.'_

"No, there's nothing." answered Sophie, ignoring the voice in her head, "I'm just … having fun."

Laura sighed, "Well your friends miss you Soph. You're either paralytic or unconsciousness. It can't be good for you."

"I was gonna stay in tonight anyway." sighed Sophie, tilting her head back against the arm of the chair, "I'm exhausted … What's her face was insatiable last night and her only goal seemed to be to drain me of all bodily fluids."

Laura scrunched up her nose, "Too much info Sophie."

"Sorry but it's true." stated Sophie, rising to her feet and stretching, "I'm starving and need hangover food … wanna go for breakfast?"

Craig couldn't help but break out into a broad smile, slinging an arm around Sophie's shoulders and squeezing the brunette, "There we go Webster, we've missed you."

"But you should like … change and possibly shower cause you look like shit." teased Laura, giving Sophie a look that expressed despite her playful tone, she was being serious.

Nodding her head, Sophie stepped towards the bathroom, "I was thinking the same thing."

"Is it alright if I invite Sian?"

Sophie stopped in her tracks. Closing her eyes as she cursed the gods for putting her in such a position, she gritted her teeth and tried to sound as normal as possible, Sophie kept her back to her friend and slowly nodded her head, "That would be nice."

…

Picking up four packets of sugar, Sophie bunched them together in her hand before ripping the top of the packets open and tipping the contents into her mug of coffee. Her sunglasses were firmly in place over her eyes, forbidding any of the suns rays from adding to her already pounding headache. The group were sat at a table outside a small café just round the corner from their flat and Sophie couldn't be happier that it was such a nice day. There was something about the sunshine on a warm morning in the city that seemed to lighten her mood. However, it could have been the three paracetamol she'd popped before leaving the house.

"Enough sugars there Webster?" teased Laura, watching with mild amusement as the brunette stirred the contents of her mug with a spoon before taking an eager gulp of the brown liquid.

"I need sugar." muttered Sophie, placing the cup back on the table, "I'm seriously low on energy at the minute so caffeine and sugar are my friends."

"You're gonna crash pretty hard from that … You're better off eating a banana or something."

Sophie raised her head, lifting her gaze to meet the blonde's across the table from her and narrowing her eyes slightly, "This'll do me just fine thanks."

Sian shrugged, "Suit yourself … don't come crying to me when you feel like shit later."

"I've survived this long without your health tips so I think I'll be okay." returned Sophie dryly, taking another large gulp from her coffee as she deliberately maintained eye contact with Sian, placing her mug back on the table as she let out a loud, obnoxious 'ahh'.

"Soph." interjected Laura, giving Sophie a warning look.

The brunette rolled her eyes, turning in her chair and grabbing the waitresses attention who quickly came over, "Hi … would it be okay if I got a banana please?"

Pulling a slightly confused face but nodding in compliance none the less, the waitress headed back into the café as Sophie turned to face Sian, giving the blonde her most sarcastic smile.

About fifteen minutes passed at the table. Fifteen minutes that included Sophie eating her banana as slowly and deliberately as possible whilst giving Sian a look that could kill. Sophie's attitude didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the group but putting it down to the brunette being in a bad mood and not knowing Sian as well, they decided to let it slide.

Throwing her banana skin to the side, Sophie brushed her hands together before sliding her chair backwards and rising to her feet.

"I'm just gonna go to the bathroom."

As she was rinsing her hands in the sink, Sophie heard the sound of the bathroom door opening and didn't even need to glance up in the mirror to know who would have followed her.

"Would you mind telling me what the hell your problem is?"

Sophie turned on the spot, drying her hands on a paper towel as she looked up to meet the other girl's gaze, "I don't really have a problem Sian … Should I?"

Sian scoffed, folding her arms across her chest and eying Sophie up with disgust, "You're pathetic, you know that? What precisely are you trying to prove?"

"Excuse me?" started Sophie, furrowing her brow as she took a step closer to Sian, "Don't start acting like you know what I'm like or what I'm doing. Who exactly do you think you are?"

"Don't play innocent with me Sophie … I've seen the way you've been acting lately. So what was it? I didn't wanna go home with you that night so you're going out of your way to prove you don't care? Or maybe you're purposely treating me like garbage to show me that you never really cared for me much anyway?"

Sophie rolled her eyes, "Well firstly, that's true, I never really cared much for you. There's a difference between caring about you and wanting to nail you … Secondly, and you think I'm arrogant? You sure think highly of yourself don't you, figuring that everything I do is for your benefit … Vain party, table for one."

"Is there any need for that attitude?" snapped Sian, narrowing her eyes at Sophie, "You know what, I couldn't be more pleased I said no to you that night. You're everything I thought you were but a million times worse."

Taking a step forward, Sophie leaned in closer to Sian and set her teeth, "You have absolutely no idea what I'm like so stop pretending that you do … Also, I'd appreciate it if in future, you stay out of my way."

"Oh really? But then who are you going to inappropriately flirt with?" asked Sian dryly.

"I'm sure I'll cope without it." snapped Sophie.

Shaking her head at the brunette, Sian gave Sophie a look of disgust, "Well yano what? With pleasure."

And with that, Sian turned on the spot and headed back out of the bathroom, slamming the door as loudly and violently as she could behind her leaving an equally irritated Sophie behind.


	5. Chapter 5

Sophie slammed her thumbs angrily against the buttons on the controller she was clutching in her hands. Her eyes were slightly narrowed as she squinted to focus on the television screen in front of her. She was perched on the edge of the sofa, leaning as far forward as humanly possible without toppling over and her mouth was slightly agape as she stared avidly at the screen. Her palms were slightly sweaty and she would occasionally bite down on her lip or let out a grunt as she hammered the buttons on the controller, all of her attention focused solely on the video game she was so invested in.

As the game loaded the next part, Sophie took the time to take an eager sip from her can of beer and push her glasses a little further up her nose, clenching and unclenching her fists as she tried to loosen up her fingers after grasping the controller so tightly. Just as she began hammering buttons again, Sophie sensed the presence of someone else entering the room, however, refused to let her attention drift anywhere other than the video game.

"Sophie can we talk please?"

The brunette grimaced, jumping up just a millimetre from the sofa as she frantically pressed her thumb against a button in an attempt to complete a particularly difficult manoeuvre in the game.

"Kind of in the middle of something here." mumbled Sophie, wincing and blowing out a sharp breath as she tilted the controller in her hands and slammed a few more buttons.

"You do know that moving the controller doesn't actually do anything don't you?"

Pulling a face, Sophie could feel herself beginning to get annoyed as she did everything in her power not to lose focus, "When I need your advice I'll ask for it."

Turning towards the television screen, the other girl watched it peculiarly as she tried to figure out what on earth Sophie was actually playing. Noticing one character jumping around and generally inflicting pain on what looked like around fifty other men, she figured Sophie was playing some kind of combat game.

"I'd really like to talk to you."

"Sian I'm kind of in the middle of … FUCK!" Sophie threw the controller across the room as she turned towards the blonde and gave her a look of fury, "Look what you've done now!"

Letting out a sigh, Sian folded her arms across her chest, "It's only a game Sophie."

"Only a ga- …" Sophie let out a long sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose as she tried to compose herself, "Sian, I've been trying to finish this game for two months now, that was the closest I've ever come and then you come in and fuck it all up."

"Well this is kind of what I wanted to talk to you about anyway …" muttered Sian, glancing to the side as she began to feel a little uncomfortable under Sophie's death glare.

Sophie raised her eyebrows, "You wanted to talk to me about playing on the ps3?"

"Not exactly …" Sian paused, blowing out a sharp breath as she eventually glanced back at Sophie, "Laura's … worried."

"Are you really coming to me with your relationship problems?"

Sian shook her head, "Not about that you idiot … about you."

"What about me?" asked Sophie, sitting back on the sofa and looking at the blonde curiously.

"She's not stupid Sophie," started Sian, "When we went for breakfast a few days ago, she could tell something was up and she knew something had been said between the two of us in the bathroom. On top of that, ever since then it's like you've went from one extreme to the other. You're no longer going out until all hours and sleeping with tonnes of girls. You **never **leave the house and you sleep with no girls."

Leaning against the back of the couch, Sophie folded her arms and frowned, "Well gee thanks for that little evaluation blondie, I really appreciate it … You seem to have taken a keen interest in my life."

Sian rolled her eyes, "Oh spare me, is there anything you can't turn around so it looks like someone's obsessed with you?"

"I don't know what you want me to say Sian." sighed Sophie, raising her hand and running her fingers through her hair, "So I've been lounging around a lot lately. So I haven't been going out and picking up girls … why is that a sudden cause for concern?"

"Because … look you've been like this since our little … argument in the toilets and where as I'm not saying it's directly because of me, I don't want there to be a problem between us." started Sian, giving Sophie a serious look as she paused for breath, "You're my girlfriend's best friend and I know how important you are to her … Despite what might have occurred between us in the past, I'd really like it if we could just wipe the slate clean, forget about it all and possibly get along."

Considering Sian's words carefully, Sophie remained silent as she maintained eye contact with the blonde. She knew everything Sian had said was true and that she had indeed gone from one extreme to the other. She couldn't deny that Sian's words had stung a little in the toilet of the café and the fact that she couldn't give the blonde an answer for any of her questions or think of anything that justified her behaviour bothered Sophie more than she cared for.

The night after their run in, Sophie had went to the bar with every intention of finding a girl to help her forget about her problems but under the scrutiny of the blonde bartender, no matter how many shots she threw back or how many different girls she talked to, Sophie was unable to find the right words or the right line to even begin charming a girl back to her flat and so instead, admitted defeat and went to bed alone. As the days passed by, maintaining her usual lifestyle became increasingly more difficult for the brunette and as such, she had recently opted for just sitting at home playing video games whilst drowning her sorrows in several cans of lager. Life at present for Sophie Webster, was more than a little bleak.

Letting out a long sigh, Sophie nodded slowly, "Look I don't want things to be awkward for Laura and I don't want her to find out I tried it on with you … plus, I really don't wanna have to start going to a different bar so if you stop fucking eye balling me across the bar, I'll stop … whatever I was doing to annoy you."

"Being an arsehole?" asked Sian, smirking ever so slightly at the brunette who was unable to stop herself from breathing out a small laugh.

Nodding, Sophie managed a smile, "Deal."

Silence washed over the pair briefly, as Sian looked down at her feet and shuffled them uncomfortably. Sophie slowly rose to from her seat, retrieving the playstation controller from the corner she'd thrown it into before settling back on the sofa and eying the blonde up questionably

"Where's Laura?" asked Sophie with a frown, realisation that Sian was seemingly alone in the flat only just dawning on her.

"Uni." answered Sian, biting down on her lip as Sophie's frown increased in size, "I was supposed to come by later when she finishes lectures but … I figured I'd drop by and see if I could speak to you … yano … clear the air before she gets here."

"How did you get in?"

"Door was open." muttered Sian, "And you were kind of … preoccupied."

Sophie nodded, looking across at the television screen and then back at Sian and raising the controller, "Wanna play?"

Taking a small step towards the sofa, a small smile began to tug at the corner of Sian's lips, "I don't really think I'll be very good."

"Don't be daft … I'll put it on co op mode and we can play together." Sophie stood up from the couch, bending down and picking up a controller from the television stand, "Catch."

Sian fumbled to catch the controller that came hurtling towards her, tossing it between both of her hands in an attempt to prevent it from falling to the floor. As she managed to grasp it firmly, the blonde looked up and glared playfully at Sophie who was watching her in amusement, "I could have dropped that!"

"So?" chuckled Sophie, settling back on the sofa, "It's not like it's yours."

"Well you could have hit me with it … I wasn't ready."

"Oh shut up and sit down." laughed Sophie, patting the spot next to her on the sofa and grinning up at the blonde as she pouted a little before eventually settling down beside Sophie.

"Sooo …" Sian looked down at the controller in her hands, assessing the buttons carefully before looking back up at Sophie with a frown, "How exactly do I play?"

Sophie chuckled, shuffling a little closer as she picked up her own controller and took a breath, "Listen carefully cause shits about to get real."

…

As Laura came through the door, she was greeted by two deafening screams of the word 'no' and a couple of loud bangs.

"I cannot fucking believe that!" screamed Sian, throwing her head back against the sofa and looking utterly defeated.

Sophie shook her head, mirroring Sian's position and letting out a sigh, "So close."

Laura glanced down at the coffee table, noticing a fair few empty cans of beer before her eyes drifted to two dents in the wall just above a pair of controllers lay on the ground.

Snapping her head back to the sulking pair on the couch, Laura raised her eyebrows, "That's coming out of your security deposit Webster."

"What is?" asked Sophie, as she leant forward to pick up a can of beer and passed it across to the girl next to her before picking up her own and settling back into the cushions.

"That." answered Laura, nodding towards the dents in the wall, "What's even happening here anyway?"

"Video games." stated Sophie, nudging the blonde next to her and grinning, "We've had a fun day haven't we?"

Nodding her head, Sian smiled widely as she held her thumb and forefinger a millimetre apart, "We were like **this **close to completing that game."

"I'm torn up for you guys, I really am." muttered Laura, "So why are you here already? I told you I wouldn't be back until about seven."

Swallowing as she tried to think of a plausible lie, Sian ran her tongue over her lips and shrugged, "Yeah I dunno babe … for some reason I thought you said four."

"So you've been here this whole time?" asked the red head, raising her eyebrows at her girlfriend."

Nodding her head, Sian shrugged her shoulders again, "Got sucked into the world of gaming."

"You seem happier." observed Laura, gesturing towards Sophie and smiling down at her friend.

Sophie grinned enthusiastically, "Like I said, it's been a fun day."

"Well," started Sian, placing her hand on Sophie's leg and letting out a groan as she pushed herself up onto her feet, "I'm afraid the gaming must come to an end as I've got a date to get ready for."

"Ohhhh I see how it is … you just use me for company until something better comes along."

Sian laughed, "I'm glad you understand our relationship dynamic."

"You could always phone up one of your slags for company." teased Laura, giving Sophie a smirk as the brunette scowled back at her.

"Don't be mean." laughed Sian, pushing Laura gently in the back towards the bedroom, "Go start getting changed and I'll just get a glass of water."

Sophie stretched out on the sofa, resting her head against the arm of the couch so she was facing towards the direction of the kitchen, watching Sian's every move as she filled a glass with water.

Raising the glass to her lips, Sian's eyes met Sophie's and she quickly swallowed the water and wiped at her mouth, "What?"

"Nothing." stated Sophie, her gaze remaining firmly fixed on the blonde.

Taking another few sips of water, her eyes still locked with Sophie's, Sian rolled her eyes and couldn't help but laugh somewhat uncomfortably as she stepped back into the living room, "Seriously, what?"

"Today's been nice … we should do it again."

Sian nodded her head, smiling back at the brunette, "I'd like that."

"Cool." Sophie grimaced ever so slightly as the word left her lips, realising she was being far from 'cool' at that moment in time.

"You're rather pleasant company when you're not shamelessly flirting with me."

Rising to her feet, Sophie took a step towards the blonde, smirking as she leant in towards her, "Today was quite an eye opener though, you're rather good with your fingers aren't you."

Slapping Sophie across the arm playfully, Sian shook her head, unable to stop a grin from tugging at her lips, "You're unbelievable."

"Enjoy your date." Sophie shouted after Sian, as the blonde began her walk down the corridor towards Laura's room, giving Sophie a small wave as she walked away.

_I can do this_ thought Sophie, picking up the glass Sian had used and giving it a quick rinse before filling it with water, _I can be friends with my best friend's girlfriend … who I tried to sleep with. Easy._


	6. Chapter 6

Sophie slowly shut the door behind her, a baffled expression on her face as she stopped in the centre of the living room. Fiddling with her keys in one hand, the brunette's eyes looked glazed over as she contemplated the events that had transpired that evening.

"You alright Webster?"

Refocusing her eyes, Sophie raised her hand to her face, brushing her fingers over her chin as she frowned at Laura, "The weirdest thing just happened."

"We figured you'd be out all night." started Laura, glancing across at the clock on the wall and then back at her friend, "It's only nine."

Nodding her head, Sophie briefly glanced down to the blonde who was sprawled across the sofa, her head resting on a pillow in Laura's lap. Giving Sian a small nod of acknowledgement, the previous frown quickly etched it's way back across Sophie's face as she switched her gaze to the red-head, "Yeah I ... I don't know what happened."

"Is everything okay Soph? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Settling down into the armchair just across from the couple, Sophie nodded weakly at her friend, "I don't understand ... I was ... well I was talking to this girl and then it all went wrong."

"What do you mean it all went wrong?" Laura frowned, completely unsure what it was that Sophie was trying to tell her.

Seeming to snap out of her daze, Sophie gave the girls in front of her a serious look, "Okay so I was flirting with this girl, things were going well and I told her I'd just go buy her another drink ... when I got back from the bar she refused my drink, called me every name under the sun and stormed away as if I'd really insulted her."

"Maybe she saw sense." teased Sian, earning her the finger from Sophie.

Letting out a small laugh, Laura tapped the blonde on the head, "Don't be nasty ... but seriously Soph, maybe she'd just heard about you from someone or she realised her friend had slept with you before or something. There'll be a totally reasonable explanation."

Snapping her fingers together, Sophie pointed at Laura and nodded, "See! ... that's what I thought. But that isn't the end of the story."

"So what's the end of the story?"

"It happened again!" announced Sophie, jumping up from the armchair and throwing her hands out to the side dramatically, "And not just one more time. THREE fucking times!"

Sian sat up on the sofa, giving Sophie a baffled expression, "Hang on a second ... you're saying that you hit on three girls and each time you left to go buy them a drink, they seemed to change their mind and begin to hate you?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying!"

"Okay that's pretty fucking weird." agreed Laura, rubbing her temple as she tried to think of an explanation, "And you didn't do anything while you were at the bar? Like hit on another girl in front of them or anything?"

Sophie shook her head, "No, I did nothing. I talked to them, they were laughing and having fun and seemed to like me. I'd go to the bar, do nothing but buy drinks, and then when I returned it was as if they thought I was the fucking devil. One of them bloody slapped me!"

Snorting out a laugh, Sian quickly pursed her lips and gave the brunette an apologetic look as Sophie glared at her, "Sorry."

"This isn't funny." muttered Sophie.

"Well yano Soph, not to be harsh but ... your reputation was bound to catch up with you sooner or later."

Sophie shook her head, instantly brushing off Sian's comment as she began to pace back and forth in front of the sofa, "It's not that ... someone's fucking with me. This isn't down to me. Those girls were more than happy to be with me but something or someone changed that and I plan to find out why."

"How exactly?" asked Laura.

Slumping back into the armchair, Sophie gave the couple a defeated look and let out a sigh, "I don't know."

Silence washed over the group briefly until Sian jumped up slightly and seemed to look extremely excited, "I've got it!"

Looking up at Sian, Sophie raised her eyebrows and gave the blonde an expectant look that grew progressively more impatient as the seconds ticked by and Sian still didn't elaborate, "Well?"

"Oh ... well ... I was thinking that you and Laura could go to the bar and you could pretend to hit on her. When you walk away to get drinks, the reason might show itself."

Sophie shook her head, "Never gonna work."

"She's right." added Laura, "Everyone who knows Sophie knows me and if someone is doing this they clearly know Sophie and will know that I'm her best friend and it's a set up."

"Well ... what about me?"

Sophie frowned, "What about you?"

Unable to believe Sophie's lack of understanding, Sian rolled her eyes, "Well what if you tried it on with me?"

"Oh my god babe you're a genius!" blurted out Laura, her grin matching Sian's as the pair turned to Sophie, "You hit on Sian and then see if someone tries anything when you leave."

"Errm ... I dunno ..." mumbled Sophie, itching the back of her neck uncomfortably. "Might be a bit ... weird."

"Oh come on Webster, it's worth a try right?"

Sophie ran her tongue over her lips, silently weighing up the pros and cons in her head as Sian and Laura stared back at her expectantly. Although Sophie believed she had absolutely no desire to sleep with Sian or have the blonde show her any kind of affection, she couldn't help but feel it was asking for trouble to enter into a flirtatious relationship with Sian, just for show or not. She feared that the pair of them would be entering dangerous territory and wasn't even sure if she could properly flirt with Sian given what had occurred between the two of them in the past.

"I …"

Sensing Sophie's discomfort, Sian shuffled forward on the couch and leant towards the brunette who eventually lifted her gaze to meet Sian's.

"Soph, it's not a big deal. It's only a bit of acting to try and get to the bottom of this." started Sian, smiling reassuringly at Sophie, "You **do **want to get to the bottom of this don't you?"

"Of course I do."

Sian nodded, "Well then … I'll be at Sinners at eight tomorrow and I have a feeling I might need someone to buy me a drink."

…

Stepping into the bar, Sophie did a quick scan as she tried to calm her nerves. Running her hands across the lapels of her blazer to flatten it out, the brunette flitted her eyes over the occupants of the establishment, all seemingly having a good time and chatting and dancing amongst themselves. Sophie's eyes quickly settled on a blonde by the bar and she instantly felt her heart rate increase. She wasn't quite sure why she suddenly felt so nervous but there was something about the prospect of walking up to Sian and pretending to flirt with her that seemed to set her heart racing and create a lump in her throat.

Ignoring the sweating of her palms and the buzzing in her head, Sophie huffed out a sharp breath and took her first step towards her fake conquest of the night.

Settling into a bar stool beside the blonde, Sophie noticed a discreet smirk begin to form across Sian's lips and couldn't stop herself from releasing a chuckle and shaking her head.

Turning towards Sian, Sophie raised her eyebrows and leant a little closer, "You're loving this aren't you?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"You **know **what I mean Powers." started Sophie, grinning at the blonde, "Not only did you get to turn down the great Sophie Webster … you get to do it twice."

Leaning towards the brunette, Sian smirked, "I must just be immune to your charms."

"Well … regardless of that. Can I interest you in a drink?"

Sian looked down at her drink and shook it a little causing the ice to clink against the glass, "Looks like you arrived just in time."

"What're you having then?" asked Sophie, pointing to the empty glass and raising her eyebrows expectantly at Sian.

Shooting the brunette a grin, Sian slipped off the chair and rested her hand on Sophie's arm, leaning in towards her ear and lowering her voice, "Surprise me."

Unable to stop herself, Sophie turned her head as Sian began to walk away towards a table in the corner. She remained transfixed for just a second longer than she would have liked, watching each step the blonde took before giving her head a small shake and turning back to the bartender to place her order.

A few minutes later, Sophie slipped into a chair at a table in the corner of the bar, sliding a drink across towards Sian who eyed it up curiously.

Raising the glass to her lips, Sian took a tentative sip before breaking out into a grin and placing it back down, "Amaretto and coke … very nice but gotta say it was a risky move."

"The amount of girls I buy drinks for … you get a knack for spotting what they might drink."

"So …" Sian settled back in her seat, folding her arms across her chest and tilting her head to the side as she locked eyes with Sophie, "Here we are again."

"At least you let me buy you a drink this time."

Sian laughed, "Well then enlighten me … what would your next move have been?"

Sophie leant forward, folding her hands on the table and scanning her eyes deliberately over Sian's arms, "Well I wouldn't have hit on you if you'd been like this the first time."

Sian watched as Sophie leant forward and gripped her arms, unfolding them and letting them fall into the blonde's lap.

"You're putting up too much of a barrier … I tend to go for girls that are more relaxed and body language is the best way to tell if someone is actually interested in you. Look at me."

Sian glanced across at Sophie and cocked an eyebrow, "What about you?"

"I'm not all stiff and sitting with my arms folded. I'm relaxed, I'm maintaining eye contact. I'm leaning a little closer to you so you can see I want to be near you. And I'll occasionally do this." Sophie leant forward, brushing her fingers delicately over Sian's hand, her eyes never leaving the blonde's, "It breaks the personal space barrier between us and it shows I have an actual interest in getting close to you."

Sian nodded, running her tongue over her lips as Sophie retracted her hand. The blonde reached for her drink and took a large gulp, her eyes darting up to meet Sophie's as the brunette released a small laugh.

"Another?" asked Sophie, sliding her chair back as she rose to her feet and Sian nodded. "Okay, I'll be right back."

Sian nodded again as the brunette flashed her a quick wink and turned towards the bar. The reason the two of them were at the bar together had momentarily slipped Sian's mind, that was until she sensed the presence of someone that wasn't Sophie slipping into the chair opposite her.

"Can I help you?" asked Sian, looking at the stranger expectantly.

"I don't know if you're aware of this but that," the girl turned and pointed towards Sophie at the bar, "Is Sophie Webster and you want to stay away from her."

Sian frowned, "And why exactly would I want to do that?"

"Because she's the most horrible, using, selfish and untrustworthy woman I've ever met."

"How do I know you're not just saying this cause you want her for yourself?"

A cold laugh escaped the girls lips as she quickly looked across at the bar to check Sophie was still preoccupied before turning back to Sian, "Oh trust me, I've been there and I won't be going there again. Granted, you might have the best night of your life but she'll throw you away like garbage in the morning. That's if you're lucky enough to stay the night. I've heard from some girls who are sent packing before they've even caught their breath."

Sian leant forward towards the girl, not entirely convinced by the girls psychotic behaviour, "Why exactly is she so bad?"

Sophie stood at her bar, using all the will power she had to remain staring firmly ahead and not turn to face the table that Sian was currently occupying. She was hoping that the plan was going well and at that moment, the blonde would currently be figuring out what it was that had been messing up her attempts at pulling the previous night.

A tap on the shoulder instantly snapped Sophie from her thoughts and when she turned, she was greeted by the last thing she expected to see: a furious looking Sian.

"Bathroom. Now!" snapped Sian before turning and heading towards the women's toilet in the corner of the bar.

Slightly baffled, Sophie quickly downed her drink, figuring she'd need it before following after Sian into the bathroom. Once inside the confines of the toilet, Sian turned on the spot, her arms folded across her chest and a look of extreme irritation written across her face.

"You know … I'm surprised this hasn't happened to you sooner." started Sian, shaking her head at Sophie and frowning, "At first I thought you were just a bit selfish and cared more about sex than relationships which … yano … to each their own. But you really are a piece of fucking work aren't you?"

Sophie frowned, rubbing the back of her neck with her palm, "I'm sorry … I'm confused?"

"You were right." stated Sian, pacing back and forth in the bathroom, "It was someone messing with you, speaking to the girls when you went to the bar."

"I knew it!"

"But to be perfectly honest I think she'd be better off knocking your head off your shoulders than wrecking your sex life."

"Excuse me?"

Sian shook her head, "You! You selfish, horrible person took a vulnerable, heart broken girl home to your bed and fucked her. You promised her you'd call. You used her for your own gain and then you just let her go."

"I **never **tell anyone I bring home that I'm interested in anything more from them." defended Sophie.

"Do you remember going to a bar called The Five Swans?" asked Sian, cocking her head to the side as she waited for Sophie's answer.

Thinking for a second, her eyebrows etching together as she considered her answer, Sophie slowly shook her head, "I'm not sure I do?"

"Well … there was a girl there. A girl who was emotionally and mentally broken and you went up to her, laid all your flirting and charming on her and made her feel like things weren't that bad anymore."

"Surely that's a good thing?"

Sian snorted, "You know why she was so upset?"

Sophie shook her head, "No but I'm sure you're about to tell me."

"Because her mother had just died. She was there having a drink after her mother's funeral and you went up to her and flirted with her." stepping forward, Sian hit Sophie hard across the arm as her voice began to rise in volume, "You used a girl who was in the most vulnerable of positions and then shit all over her over the next day by making her feel completely worthless! I can't fucking believe you!"

Rubbing her arm and stepping back as Sian tried to deliver another blow, Sophie held her hand out defensively, "Whoa! How the fuck was I meant to know?"

"Maybe if you spoke to these girls and used them as more than sex objects in your twisted little games you'd have found out." stated Sian coldly before shooting Sophie another look of disgust and pushing forcefully passed her.

"Sian wai-"

"I have **nothing** to say to you!" spat Sian, not even turning to face the brunette as she slammed the bathroom door shut behind her and left a stunned Sophie behind.


	7. Chapter 7

"Come on you fucking piece of shit!" grumbled Sophie, shaking the kettle angrily on its stand as it refused to begin boiling, her actions growing progressively more violent as time ticked by and it still wasn't working.

Sophie Webster had awoken in a foul mood and she knew from the second she rolled out of bed that the day was not going to go well for her. She'd hardly had any sleep and the lack of energy along with the events of the previous night were seriously weighing her down. After their run in at the bar, Sian had quickly disappeared and Sophie had been left to drown her sorrows for a while before heading back to the flat. Upon settling into bed, Sophie had been more than a little disgruntled by the sound of Sian's voice in her friend's bedroom and had quickly thrust her headphones into her ears and turned her iPod up as loud as possible to drown out the sound. After tossing and turning for a few hours, the brunette had eventually managed to drift into a restless sleep filled with feelings of guilt, irritation and anger towards what had occurred that night.

Stepping into the kitchen, Laura frowned as she watched Sophie man handle the kettle and continue to mutter profanities under her breath. Side stepping the brunette, Laura pushed her friend slightly out of the way before delicately placing the kettle down and flicking the switch.

Sophie watched as the light came on straight away and the kettle began to boil, huffing out a breath before collapsing into a chair at the table and rubbing her eyes.

"You alright Soph? You seem kinda … tense." asked Laura, not even sure why she was daring to question her friend given the mood she appeared to be in.

"I'm fine."

Pursing her lips as she debated whether or not to push Sophie further, Laura leant back against the kitchen counter and watched the brunette carefully as she rested her head in her hands, "How'd things go last night? You two figure out why those girls kept going off on one with you?"

Letting out a grunt, Sophie lifted her head and felt a pang of discomfort in her stomach at the mention of the previous night, "Yeah … was some … psycho."

"Psycho?"

Sophie nodded, "Just some girl I'd slept with who wasn't very happy that I hadn't pursued a relationship with her and was trying to get revenge. No big deal."

"Well you should take it as a compliment Webster," started Laura, turning towards the kettle and pouring the water into three mugs on the counter, "You must be damn good in bed if she was so upset she didn't get seconds."

Just as Sophie opened her mouth to reply, she abruptly shut it again and placed her head back in her hands as Sian stepped into the kitchen. Even with her head down, Sophie could feel the blonde's eyes burning into her and she had no doubt in her mind that she was receiving a look of pure disgust.

"Tea ready yet babe?"

Pulling a face as Sian spoke, Sophie let out a sigh and rose to her feet to collect her own mug from the kitchen counter.

"Yeah … Webster was just having a bit of a wrestle with the kettle when I arrived." joked Laura, hoping to lighten Sophie's mood somewhat as she patted the brunette on the back, "Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning."

"Thanks for the brew mate." muttered Sophie, leaning across the red-head to retrieve her mug before turning to head back from her room as quickly as possible.

"Aren't you gonna have breakfast?" asked Laura, eying Sophie up curiously, "You normally can't wait to get food in your system on a morning."

"I errm …" clearing her throat, Sophie desperately tried to think of an excuse whilst ignoring the rumbling of her stomach, "Just … don't have anything in to eat so I figured I'd go out for something."

"Oh don't be daft." started Laura, taking a sip from her drink and nodding towards Sian who was sat at the table and looking anywhere but at Sophie, "Sian's gonna make breakfast and you can have some."

"No really, it's fi-"

"Sit down Webster, I need to have a shower anyway and you can keep her company." ordered Laura, not giving Sophie chance to reply as she leant down to give her girlfriend a quick kiss on the cheek before heading towards the bathroom.

As soon as Laura was out of earshot, Sian raised her head and narrowed her eyes at Sophie, "Do not think for a second I'm making anything for you."

"And how exactly are you gonna explain that to Laura?"

"Maybe I'll tell her what a piece of shit her best friend really is."

Shaking her head, Sophie took a step closer towards the kitchen table and frowned down at the girl in front of her, "I don't understand why the fuck this is such a big deal to you."

"Excuse me? You don't understand why I might not want to speak to someone who would do what that you did?"

"Okay firstly, it's got nothing to do with you," started Sophie, placing her hands down on the table and locking eyes with Sian, "Secondly, it's not like I pushed that girl into sleeping with me. She's a big girl and can make her own decisions. Thirdly, how the hell was I meant to know that her mother had just died. What, so now I have to ask every girl I sleep with if they've lost a loved one recently just in case?"

Sian scoffed, "You know, I can't decided what disgusts me more. The fact you did it or your lack of remorse."

"Of course I'm sorry!" shot Sophie, pushing her hands down a little harder against the wood of the table as she felt herself beginning to lose her temper, "Do not sit there and judge me when you have no idea who I am or what I'm like. You think cause I hit on you in a bar once and you happen to have spent a couple of hours with me you're now the expect on me? What happened to that girl with her mother is horrible and I'm very sorry that she died but in no way is that my fault. And if that girl wanted to sleep with me and expected more, then that's her wrong doing not mine. I make it perfectly clear to every girl I bring home that I have no intention of making them my girlfriend … So I'm not sorry that she seemed under the illusion she was going to get more than a one night stand from me."

Looking down at the table, Sian noticed Sophie's knuckles starting to pale slightly at the weight she was applying to the table beneath her. Sian's eyes flickered back up to Sophie's face and she could tell that the girl in front of her was most likely just a small push away from losing her temper.

"Why are you so angry with me?" asked Sian, folding her arms as she sat back in her chair and tilted her head to the side, "I'm not the one who was messing up your oh so precious sex life."

"I'm angry with you because you treat me like some kind of insensitive, selfish sex maniac with a one track mind when you have absolutely no right to do so."

"Given your behaviour and track record you can't exactly blame me can you?"

"Where do you get off on passing judgement on me and my life?" asked Sophie, stepping back from the table and settling her hands by her sides, frowning down at Sian.

"I don-"

"No, you know what? Save it." stated Sophie, raising her hand and stopping Sian from speaking, "I've tried to be nice to you. Yeah I might have found it a bit strange when you walked into my flat at first and I struggled with it but … I'm sorry for that and I tried to get along with you because it was what we both thought was best. But if this is how it's gonna be then I really have no desire to be around you."

"So let me get this straight … **you **walk around treating people like shit and yet **I'm **the one who you think is in the wrong here?"

Sophie shook her head, "I might sleep with a lot of girls but I certainly don't treat them like shit. Yeah I wouldn't make a very good girlfriend and I'm hopeless when it comes to relationships but they could do a lot worse than sleeping with me."

Rolling her eyes, Sian scoffed, "Well you think highly of yourself don't you?"

"There's a lot more to me than just hitting on women you know?" shot Sophie, her irritation beginning to surface again at Sian's attitude.

Rising to her feet, Sian smiled weakly at Sophie, "I know there is … and that's why it's a shame."

"A shame?"

"This whole thing you do. The drinking and the pulling girls and the sleeping with them and never calling them again. You wear this whole image you've created of Sophie Webster like a mask." stated Sian, "Thing is … you wear it so well that people think it's true."

Sophie bowed her head, letting out a sigh as she felt Sian's hand come to rest on top of her own.

"Everything's just … why do you have to make me feel like this?"

Sian frowned, "Like what?"

"Like the biggest fucking idiot on the planet."

"You're not an idiot Soph." stated Sian, squeezing the brunette's hand before stepping away and settling back into her seat, "You just do idiotic things."

"You know I didn't mean to … hurt that girl don't you?" mumbled Sophie, finally lifting her gaze to meet Sian's, "I don't want any of my actions to hurt anyone."

"Have you ever considered maybe just … trying to have more than a one night stand with a girl? You're a good person Sophie and you deserve more than that."

Breathing out a laugh, Sophie shook her head, "No I don't."

"Why do you say that?"

Sophie paused, looking back at Sian intently as she shrugged and managed a weak smile, "When it comes to having a relationship, any girl could do a lot better than me."

Before Sian had a chance to reply, Laura stepped back in to the kitchen, frowning as she noticed there was not only no breakfast on the table but there was also an undeniable tension in the room.

"Everything alright?" asked Laura, looking between the pair of girls suspiciously.

Running her tongue over her lips, Sophie stepped back from the table and gave her friend her most convincing smile as she nodded her head, "Yeah we were just talking about last night."

"Oh right …" muttered Laura, turning towards Sian who was staring down at the table uncomfortably, "Well what happened? I'm still yet to hear all about it."

"I'll let Sian fill you in mate, I'm gonna go out." stated Sophie, walking towards the entrance of the kitchen.

"You not having any breakfast then?" asked Laura.

Sophie shook her head, "I'll grab something while I'm out … catch you guys later."

"You sure Soph?" asked Sian, taking the brunette somewhat by surprise given the words that had been exchanged between them that morning, "I don't mind making you something."

"It's fine." stated Sophie, giving Sian a grateful smile, "Thanks though."

"No problem."

Giving the blonde a final nod, Sophie patted Laura on the arm before retreating from the kitchen. Once in the safety of her bedroom, Sophie collapsed onto her mattress and let out a long sigh, raising her hands to rest behind her head and closing her eyes as she lost herself in thought.

Within the short space of time she'd known Sian, the blonde had managed to make her feel such a complex variety of emotions that it was slowly beginning to take it's toll. Ordinarily, Sophie had absolutely no qualms when it came to sleeping with an endless string of girls with no feelings attached. But now things were different. The most annoying thing for Sophie was she wasn't even sure why things had become so different and why she was second guessing her own actions so much. It wasn't that she wanted to impress Sian by any means but it was almost like she didn't want to let the blonde down. Having Sian think badly of her was something Sophie couldn't stand although she was yet to work out why exactly that was. What she had worked out was that she desperately needed to stop thinking about Sian.

Huffing out a sharp breath, Sophie opened her eyes and sat up in bed, trying her best to stop herself from over analysing her relationship with her friend's girlfriend. Looking around her bedroom, Sophie let out another sigh before rising to her feet and running her fingers through her hair as she came to a decision that would hopefully clear her head and make herself feel better. _I need to get laid._


	8. Chapter 8

Slowly waking up in the morning, Sophie rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and let out a low groan. A dull throbbing in her head made it obvious to the brunette that she was going to be suffering from somewhat of a hangover that day and the sound of soft breathing nearby informed her that she also had the task of getting rid of her latest conquest to deal with.

Stretching out in the bed and feeling herself beginning to wake up a little more, Sophie eventually opened her eyes and took in the view of the girl that was lay beside her.

_Not bad Sophie, not bad at all_. The brunette mulled over her thoughts for a second, analysing the naked blonde that was sleeping soundly beside her. Just as she was considering her options and trying to think up a plan to dispose of the girl, Sophie found herself unable to do so. The task of thinking up an excuse to get rid of her conquest gradually became impossible as Sian's words slowly but surely drifted into her mind. "_Have you ever considered maybe just __…__ trying to have more than a one night stand with a girl? You__'__re a good person Sophie and you deserve more than that." _

Letting out a long sigh, Sophie couldn't help but dwell on the blonde's words for longer than she would have liked. As much as Sophie knew her strong point was meaningless sex with random girls, it couldn't be denied that Sian's words had had some sort of lasting effect on her. It was true that Sophie had never even tried to have more than a one night stand with a girl, unable to muster the energy or the interest to focus on a girl for longer than a small, sex fuelled window. Despite herself however, Sophie couldn't stop her thoughts from exploring the idea of entertaining the girl beside her for longer than one night of passion. Turning on to her side, Sophie really studied the girl next to her. The blonde hair strewn across the pillow, a subtle smile tracing her lips as she slept soundly and an undeniably attractive body, she was surely a sight for sore eyes. Thinking back to the previous night, Sophie could also recall that the blonde was not only fun but extremely good in the bedroom department. Would it really be so bad to spend more than the one night with her?

Huffing out a breath, Sophie tried to figure out what exactly she could do that wouldn't be too trying, but would give her some sort of idea as to whether she was built for more than a simple one night stand. Before she could make up her mind, the brunette's thoughts were scrambled as the girl beside her began to stir and slowly opened her eyes. As the dazzling green colour became clear to Sophie, she couldn't help but be slightly blown away and unlike the grumpy, post-sex attitude she usually had towards her bed mates, Sophie couldn't help but crack a smile.

Silence washed over the pair as they looked at one another for a few minutes before the blonde turned fully on to her side to face Sophie.

"Do you remember my name?"

Somewhat taken aback by the question and used to the answer being no, a blind panic washed over Sophie as she tried to formulate a response. However, as it suddenly dawned on the brunette that she did in fact have an answer, Sophie nodded her head with a grin.

"It's Alex."

Returning the grin, the blonde bit down on her lip and nodded her head, "And there was me prepared for you to be a sleaze."

Sophie chuckled as she sat up in the bed and looked around for some clothing, "Give it time."

"Is that your way of telling me you want me to leave now?"

Crawling out of the bed, Sophie bent down to pick up an over sized t shirt and pulled it over her head. Once covered, the brunette made eye contact with Alex and considered the question carefully. Her response, shocked even herself.

"Unless you want breakfast?"

The words felt completely alien to Sophie yet at the same time, they filled her with a sense of achievement. Torn between thinking this made her seem like an utter scumbag for actually being proud of the fact she managed to keep a girl around long enough for breakfast and shock that she'd offered, Sophie felt an unfamiliar sense of nerves descend on her as she waited for an answer.

The nerves were quickly dashed as Alex broke out in a smile and nodded her head slowly, "Sure, that sounds nice."

Sophie bent down, pulling on a pair of boxers before throwing some sweatpants and a shirt at Alex then straightening up.

"Throw some clothes on and I'll see you in the kitchen."

As Sophie set about placing some bacon and sausages into the frying pan, she felt the presence of someone else behind her and turned to face the new arrival.

"Oh."

Laura cocked an eyebrow, "Good morning to you too Webster."

"It's not that it's just …" Sophie trailed off as Alex stepped into the kitchen, looking somewhat uncomfortable in the presence of Laura before settling down in to a chair at the kitchen table.

Giving her flatmate a questionable expression, Laura almost fainted as Sophie turned to the guest and opened her mouth to speak.

"You want a brew?"

Alex turned in her seat and smiled at the brunette, "Yeah that'd be great thanks."

A few minutes later, Sophie set down a plate and a mug in front of her guest before bringing her own over to the table and falling into the seat opposite.

"Thanks, this is really sweet of you." beamed Alex.

Suddenly uncomfortable at the thought of having breakfast with her companion, Sophie felt a wave of nerves and uneasiness wash over her. _This was a mistake._

Sensing her friend's discomfort, Laura stepped fully into the threshold to the kitchen and set about making her own cup of tea, not entirely sure what alternative universe she'd stepped into.

"So is this how you treat all the girls then?" asked Alex jokingly, giving the girl opposite her a shy smile.

Unable to help herself, Laura snorted out a laugh, keeping her back to the pair at the table but still able to feel Sophie's death glare burning into the back of her head.

Laughing uncomfortably, Sophie looked up at the blonde and shook her head slowly, "Not really."

Sophie's edginess only seemed to get worse as she chewed uncomfortably on a piece of bacon and tried desperately to think of something, anything to say to the girl in front of her. Completely out of her comfort zone and unsure what was meant to happen once having cooked breakfast for a girl in the morning, Sophie couldn't imagine the situation getting any worse as Sian stepped into the kitchen and froze in the doorway.

"Ummm … hello." started Sian, her greeting coming out as more of a question once setting eyes on Sophie and her guest at the table. Sian's eyes darted to Laura who was now leant against the kitchen cabinet, watching her girlfriend in amusement. Shooting Laura a questioning look, the red head merely shrugged back at Sian, picking up two mugs and handing one over.

"We'll leave you guys to it," started Laura, turning back to the pair briefly, "Was nice meeting you …"

"Alex." finished the blonde.

Nodding her head and shooting Sophie a smirk, Laura turned back to the guest, "Right, Alex. Hopefully we'll see you again soon."

Wishing she could kill her friend then and there, Sophie took a large gulp of her tea and closed her eyes tightly as she tried to think of a way to make the meal any less painless. She knew she was terrible when it came to anything more than sleeping with a girl but the last fifteen or twenty minutes had been nothing short of torturous and Sophie could only describe it as an eye opener. Had she really been this clueless all her life? No wonder girls seemed to think she was a scumbag if the only thing she knew how to do with them was sex. When did it become so hard to hold a conversation with a girl once the deed had been done? Sophie knew she was talented in the charming department and if she'd had a drink in her hand in a club, sparking up a conversation with Alex and flirting shamelessly with her would have been no problem. Thinking back to the previous night, Sophie remembered how easy it had been to just chat mindlessly. Confidence seemed to ooze effortlessly from the brunette but now she couldn't find two specs of self-assurance to rub together. Seconds were passing by as if they were hours and Sophie knew then and there that everything girls had said to her, everything Sian had accused her of and everything Sophie knew she was incapable of was true. She couldn't do this. And she couldn't pretend to be someone she wasn't. Because of this, it was just twenty short minutes and several excuses later that Alex found herself outside of the flat and Sophie lay sprawled out on the sofa alone.

There was not a shadow of a doubt in Sophie's mind that she had behaved like a prize pig however it did baffle the brunette as to why she was bothered. A few weeks ago, she would have banished a girl from the flat without a second thought and yet there she was, alone on the couch with the most unfamiliar feeling coursing through every inch of her body. Guilt. She felt guilty for throwing Alex out, she felt guilty for using the blonde for sex, she felt guilty for making Alex think there was more to her than a charming girl with a one track mind, but Sophie knew the most prominent reason for her guilt and the realisation of such made her stomach churn.

She had let Sian down. She'd listened, actually listened to what the blonde had said to her about trying for more and had taken the advice into account. Sian had walked into the kitchen and seen her trying and instead of making Sophie proud of herself, it served to make her feel worse about sitting at the breakfast table with Alex. The brunette couldn't quite put her finger on exactly why it had made her feel worse. After all, it had been Sian that suggested she try and surely she should have felt good about doing so. Yet the second Sophie looked up from her breakfast and set eyes on her friend's girlfriend, her stomach had dropped and she'd wished for nothing more than to be sat at the table alone.

Maybe she'd have felt more comfortable one on one with Alex, maybe she didn't want Sian to see her fail. Or maybe, just maybe, she didn't want to give Sian the satisfaction of knowing her words had gotten to her. As this thought entered Sophie's head, she instantly scrunched up her features, berating herself for even allowing the thought to exist. _I didn't do it because of Sian, I did it because I wanted to. _However, the more Sophie thought about it, the more she realised it wasn't true. Sian had said something that had stayed with Sophie. Planted a seed that over just a short amount of time had grown and grown and eventually caused the brunette to act. Sophie knew that had Sian not said something about her inability to sustain even the smallest, most casual of relationships with women, that there was no way Alex would have been sat at the breakfast table that morning.

As her head started to pound due to over thinking, Sophie leant her head back against the arm of the couch and let out a groan. _When did I start overanalysing every single thing I do. When did it become so hard to just have meaningless sex with a girl without having to think of the repercussions?_

_Pretty sure she knew when it had happened and what the reason for the change was yet reluctant to accept it, Sophie closed her eyes a little tighter and tried to relinquish all thoughts in her mind. For now, she just wanted to forget._


	9. Chapter 9

As Sophie came to on the couch, she realised two things. Firstly, in her bid to forget about the problems that were filling her head, she had fallen asleep. Secondly, she could hear voices.

"She lives!" exclaimed Laura, giving her friend a grin as Sophie finally opened her eyes and looked over.

"Time is it?" mumbled Sophie, looking around the room in a post-sleep daze.

"Two in the afternoon."

Sophie tilted her head to locate the source of the voice and saw Sian entering from the kitchen along with Craig.

"Fuck." groaned Sophie, rubbing at her eyes in a bid to wake up before lifting herself into a sitting position. "I had shit to do today."

Watching her flatmate with mild amusement, Laura couldn't help but chuckle, "So what was this morning about then?"

"Oh I can't wait to hear this." started Craig, settling himself on the sofa beside Sophie now that her legs were no longer spread across the length of it.

"Don't give me any shit." grumbled Sophie, desperately not wanting to discuss the events that had transpired earlier that day. If she was honest, she wanted nothing more than to forget all about it.

Sian cocked an eyebrow at Sophie's attitude, settling down on the arm of the chair Laura was currently occupying, "Thought Sophie Webster didn't do breakfast?"

"I don't." stated Sophie simply.

Laura laughed, "Looked like breakfast to me."

"Will you guys just leave me the fuck alone." snapped Sophie, rising to her feet as she felt herself getting thoroughly fed up of the interrogation already, "I thought I'd try and be nice, I couldn't do it, I got her to leave. End of."

Craig frowned as Sophie finished her sentence, vacating the living room and heading into the kitchen away from the group. He knew Sophie well enough to realise that something was wrong with her and as Laura and Sian sat awestruck at Sophie's reaction, he didn't hesitate before rising to his feet to follow after his friend.

"What's wrong Soph?" he asked gently, turning briefly to make sure he hadn't been followed into the kitchen.

Sophie let out a sigh, tapping her fingers on the kitchen counter as she waited for the kettle to boil. "Nothing I'm fine."

"Let's go for a drink mate."

Finally turning to face her friend, Sophie frowned, "Why?"

"I think you need it."

Half an hour later and the pair were sat at their local pub, a drink in both of their hands as they each took a sip before looking at one another expectantly, both reluctant to speak first.

Finally letting out a sigh, Craig cocked an eyebrow at the brunette, "You gonna spill yet? Because I know something's bothering you."

"Nothing's bothering me." muttered Sophie, not even trying to sound convincing.

"Come on Soph," started Craig, reaching across the table and giving his friend's hand a comforting albeit brief squeeze, "You can tell me. I won't say anything."

Sophie took another large gulp of her drink, picking at the corner of her beer mat as she tried not to crack under the intense scrutiny, "I'm not worried you'll say anything."

"Then?"

"I'm worried you'll … get the wrong end of the stick or judge me or something."

Craig chuckled, "Come on Webster, I'd never judge you."

"You don't know that."

"Try me." encouraged Craig, taking a sip of his drink and waiting patiently for Sophie to begin.

Letting out a sigh, Sophie opened her mouth to speak, "I'm not gonna name names."

"Just speak Webby." snapped Craig, a small grin tugging at the corner of his lips at Sophie's reluctance.

"Right … okay …" Sophie paused as she tried to think of the right words, "There's this girl."

"Obviously."

Shooting her friend a glare, Sophie raised her eyebrows disapprovingly.

"Sorry … continue." encouraged Craig.

"Thank you." started Sophie, taking another breath before continuing, "Anyway … she's seeing someone. But … I dunno. It's not like I have feelings for her. At least I don't think I do. It's just …" the brunette let out a growl of frustration as she tried to think of the right words to convey what was happening in her head, "She knows just how to push my buttons, yano? She does and says things and manages to make me question everything. Girls have criticised my behaviour in the past and it's never bothered me but … God, I dunno … for some reason she's different."

Listening intently to his friend's ramblings, Craig nodded along with everything she said, "And why do you think that is?"

"Fuck if I know." shrugged Sophie, taking another sip of her drink before continuing, "Honestly, no girl has ever gotten to me like this and it's driving me up the wall. Not to mention the fact she's the one girl who's actually rejected me at a bar. **And **she's in a relationship and totally off limits."

"Maybe that's the problem." suggested Craig, a puzzled expression from Sophie encouraging him to elaborate. "You can't have her, she rejected you. So you want her. You want to prove yourself to her. You want her to want you."

Shaking her head, Sophie was more than a little unwilling to agree, "I don't."

"I think deep down you know you do Soph."

"I can't … I can't do that." muttered Sophie, polishing off the rest of her pint as the desperate need for alcohol hit her, "Honestly I really don't think that's it. I don't have feelings for her. I have absolutely no trouble with sleeping with other girls, I don't find myself thinking about her unless she's said something that plays on my mind and generally she irritates the hell out of me."

Craig laughed, "Sounds like you've finally met your match Webster."

Sophie shook her head, unable to stop a small smile gracing her features, "It would seem you're right … I just … why has it got to be so complicated."

"How do you mean?"

"Well … there are certain factors that just make it impossible for me to even … I dunno, explore what all of this might mean."

"Her girlfriend?"

Sophie nodded, fidgeting with her hands as she tried to think of the best way to explain the situation to her friend without naming who she was talking about, "I know her girlfriend too. And it just makes it so incredibly hard. And they both keep cropping up in my life and fucking with my head. I just want it all to stop. I want to go back to not caring … but then at the same time …"

As Sophie trailed off, Craig nodded his head thinking he understood, "You want her to be interested? You want her to try and change you."

Sophie shrugged, "I don't know … I really don't know."

"Look Soph I really don't know what to suggest, obviously I don't know the full situation and I've never been there myself but it seems this girl has really gotten under your skin. I've never seen you act like this before and your behaviour recently has been … well… kinda worrying."

"How so?" asked Sophie, her brow furrowing at Craig's words.

Shrugging, he wasn't sure how to phrase his concern delicately, ""Well you've either been fucking anything that moves or turning into part of the furniture. Honestly you go from one extreme to the other and it's like you don't know what kind of self-destructive angle to go for."

"I don't." stated Sophie honestly, "I thought that sleeping around and trying to prove I could do it would make me feel better. And it did for a small while. But then she goes and points out what I'm doing, makes me feel like a prize idiot and I can't bring myself to act that way anymore. Every time she criticises me I just want to be better. But I don't want to give her the satisfaction of knowing she got to me."

Craig nodded, "I get it. But I think you need to just … obviously you've said this girl is off limits. And I'm gonna be honest with you Soph, you might be a bit of a whore but you coped just fine without her up until this point. You have nothing to prove to anyone."

Sophie laughed, "Wow thanks man, you really make me sound great."

Reaching across the table, Craig squeezed his friend's hand again, his face suddenly becoming serious, "You are great Soph. A little sex crazed sometimes but you're a great person. And anyone would be lucky to have you. No matter what this girl says or how she makes you feel, it's all well and good trying to make yourself look better to her but is it really you? If you want to change, she can't do that. It's something you've gotta realise yourself and you've gotta get there by yourself. No one can make you."

"When did you become so … wise?" asked Sophie, her tone almost suspicious.

Craig laughed, "You don't have to listen to me mate. But I do just want what's best for you and to me, it seems like this girl might have fucked with your head and yeah that's a bad thing. But maybe, just maybe she's made you realise something you didn't even know about yourself. That you **do **want to be different. But only you can take action and actually **be **different. And who knows, you might actually like it. The question is, are you ready?"

Rising to his feet, Craig polished off the rest of his drink, "Another?"

Sophie nodded her head, unable to form words at that moment in time as she let her friend's words sink in. She knew that what he was saying made sense but she refused to believe that one girl, the girl who'd rejected her and was now dating her best friend of all people, had managed to illicit such a drastic change. Entertaining the idea for a moment, Sophie considered the perfectly logical notion that Sian had managed to get to her. That Sian had made her realise she was wasting her time with all the one night stands and meaningless sex and that what Sophie really desired was to be an all round better person.

The disaster of that earlier morning made Sophie seriously doubt herself. She had tried to keep a girl around for longer than the night and had been unable to even make it through breakfast without wanting to run a mile. But if she was honest with herself, she couldn't really say she'd tried very hard. Granted she'd been out of her comfort zone but that was no justification for her extremely short lived attempt at more than a one night stand.

Another thought that was circling Sophie's mind was something Craig had said earlier in their discussion. _You can't have her, she rejected you. So you want her. You want to prove yourself to her. You want her to want you. _Sophie couldn't even begin to express how much this idea disgusted her. She had never in her life wanted to prove herself to anyone and her best friend's girlfriend was not about to be the first. The situation was really beginning to take it's toll on the brunette and she couldn't formulate any kind of plan that would ease the troublesome turn her life had taken. Everything she did suddenly felt pointless and the usual comfort she would find in meaningless sex and the bottom of a bottle was now replaced with a not quite so fulfilling sense of guilt and emptiness. But figuring out the key to feeling less empty was the difficult part and Sophie's head felt like it constantly hurt as she tried to think of a solution. Could Craig be right? Did she want to change? Did she want something more meaningful in her life? More importantly, was it all because of Sian?

Slamming her head down on the table, Sophie let out a groan. _Fuck._


	10. Chapter 10

"Soph are you sure you have enough booze there?!" questioned Laura, rushing over to her friend as she stumbled through the door armed with several bags of alcohol.

Grinning demonically, Sophie shook her head, "Craig's got the rest."

Sure enough, Craig joined his two flat mates in the living room a few seconds later, armed with several crates of beer and another bag hanging from one of his wrists.

"Jesus christ guys, this is **one **party and you look like you're stocking up for the year." stated Laura, completely awestruck by the amount of bottles, crates and cans that currently lay before her.

Sophie shrugged, "Well we weren't sure what everyone would like so we kind of … bought a bit of everything."

"And you funded this how?"

"My dad paid a healthy amount into my account last week and Soph just got her end of term bursary through. Need we say more?" asked Craig, struggling to the kitchen in desperate need to relieve himself of the heavy crates he was currently still holding.

"Well that's all well and good but when people are drunk beyond repair in **our **flat then it's on your heads." stated Laura, picking up a few bags from the ground and helping Sophie into the kitchen.

"Deal!" chimed Craig and Sophie in unison, shooting each other a grin as they began to unpack their bags and place the appropriate items in the fridge.

It was just a few short weeks until Christmas and as everyone handed in their final essays and assignments for the term, the three flatmates had decided it was only appropriate to throw a party. Everyone had been looking forward to the holidays having been bogged down with university work for several weeks, a night of fun with friends and far too many drinks seemed like just the antidote for the stress they'd been suffering from.

"So how many people are we expecting?" asked Laura, picking a bottle of vodka out of the bag and placing it on to the kitchen counter, "Because our flat isn't exactly massive."

Sophie shrugged, "Not sure. It's just kind of an open house tonight."

"So … it could be hundreds basically."

Laughing, Sophie shook her head as she cracked open a can of beer, "I wouldn't go that far."

"Relax Laura, it'll be fine." chuckled Craig, joining his friend in opening a drink, "Personally I can't wait to get absolutely shit faced."

"Cheers to that!" stated Sophie, grinning at Craig as they clinked their cans together.

Raising her eyebrows sceptically but seeming to admit defeat, Laura shrugged and grabbed herself a drink, "What the hell."

A few hours later and the flat was bustling with people. The sofas had been pushed back against the walls for optimal room and the living room had turned in to somewhat of a dance floor as music sounded loudly throughout the building and people danced and drank with their friends. The kitchen was full of students talking loudly amongst themselves, mixing drinks and generally socialising as they basked in the knowledge they were free from university work and the holidays were upon them. Groups of friends stood throughout the flat, taking up most of the space in the corridors as they chatted and drank to their hearts content. Any worries Laura had previously had about the party had quickly dissipated as she felt herself getting tipsy and Sophie and Craig were stood in the living room chatting to a few of the girls from their course.

"He did not say that to you!" giggled one of the girls in disbelief, slapping Sophie on the arm playfully.

"I swear to god, that's exactly how it happened!" laughed Sophie, taking a sip of her drink before continuing, "Told me I was more than welcome to drop by any time for some 'personal tutoring'. I nearly gagged."

The girl erupted into another fit of giggles at Sophie's story and shook her head, "That boy needs to know when to quit for real."

"Tell me about it."

As silence settled over the pair and they both took another gulp of their drinks, Sophie's eyes drifted across her flat, taking in the people that were present. In all honesty, she'd say she knew less than half the people at the party but it didn't bother her. She was more than happy to socialise with new people and get to know them better. Not to mention the fact that her idea of a party was the more the merrier. Glancing around the room, Sophie's gaze settled on her best friend dancing with Sian, the two of them obviously no longer sober as they laughed together in the middle of the living room. Sophie felt a smile tug at her lips as she watched Sian laugh. The brunette couldn't deny that Sian looked beautiful when she laughed. They way her eyes sparkled and her smile seemed to light up her whole face.

Since talking to Craig about her troubles weeks ago, Sophie had tried to distance herself from Sian as much as possible without making it obvious she was doing so. Not that she felt she couldn't be around Sian but the fact that the blonde seemed to be getting under her skin so much was not something Sophie wanted to entertain further. She merely thought it much safer to put a fair amount of distance between the two of them and try to get on with her life as normal. Trying not to over think her actions and allow Sian's words not to play on her mind had proved to be a little difficult for Sophie but in true Sophie Webster style, she simply thought it best not to dwell on it and brushed those feelings under the carpet. For the most part and with a little help from not talking to Sian too much, Sophie felt she was getting back to her normal self. However, on occasions such as tonight where she couldn't help but be drawn in by the blonde, even for just a brief moment, Sophie knew that no matter how much she ignored it, Sian had an undeniable effect on her. Not one hundred percent on what exactly that effect was, Sophie tried her hardest to justify it to herself, deciding it was just because Sian seemed to see through her, that the blonde did everything in her power to push her buttons and having never been treated like that by a girl before, Sophie found it both irritating and interesting at the same time.

Excusing herself from the group, Sophie finished off the last of her beer, setting it down on the coffee table before making her way to the bathroom. Grumbling to herself as she stopped behind two other girls, Sophie rested against the wall and let out a sigh. _Possibly the one downfall of house parties, the queue for the bathroom._

"Does it not seem somewhat unfair to you that you have to queue to get into your own toilet?"

Sophie turned her head to the side, grinning as she shook her head, "Just a tad."

"Then again … we are all guests so we should be allowed to go before you."

Sophie laughed, "Is that your way of trying to cut in front of me?"

Settling herself opposite Sophie and leaning against the wall so they were facing each other, Sian shrugged, "Maybe."

"Hate to break it to you but that's not gonna happen."

"But I'm a guest!"

Sophie scoffed, "Hardly. You spend just as much time here as I do."

"You say that like you're not pleased about it."

"Am I that easy to read?" teased Sophie.

As the door to the bathroom opened and the two girls in front entered, Sophie and Sian shuffled up the wall so they were next in line.

"They better not fuck in my bathroom." muttered Sophie, looking at the door with disgust.

Sian laughed, "Soph they were totally straight."

Smirking back at the blonde, Sophie shrugged, "A girls only straight until she's not."

"So Sophie Webster isn't just a lady killer but a great converter too, eh?"

"Well I don't like to brag but …"

Shaking her head in disbelief, Sian laughed. She was quite drunk after making the most of all the alcohol on offer and could feel herself loosening up. "Sometimes I wish I could be more like you in a way."

Sophie raised an eyebrow, "A whore?"

Sian snorted out a laugh, kicking Sophie in the shin playfully, "No! Just … you're so care free and confident and you do what you want, when you want.

"Why is that so desirable? Surely being with Laura is better than that."

"Yeah of course …" started Sian, trailing off as she huffed out a breath, "Whatever. I don't know."

Sophie frowned, "Are you not happy with her or something?"

"What?! No! I mean yes, yes I am."

"But …"

"But nothing." objected Sian, before raising her eyebrows at Sophie, "Even if I wasn't, I don't really think it's appropriate to discuss this with you."

"Why not?"

Sian scoffed, "Really? You're asking me that question?"

Nodding, Sophie shrugged her shoulders and looked at Sian expectantly, "Why not? We're friends, right?"

"Oh really? We're friends are we?" asked Sian, surprised what Sophie nodded her head in response, "On what grounds are we friends?"

"Well yano … we …"

Sian laughed, "Exactly. We never hang out, we don't talk, we only spend time together because I'm dating your flat mate. You couldn't exactly describe our relationship as a friendship could you?"

"Well thanks a lot." muttered Sophie with a frown. "What would you class it as then?"

"Fucked up."

Breaking out in a smile, Sophie shook her head, "Okay yes, maybe."

"Maybe?" repeated Sian incredulously, "Lets see, we first met when you flirted outrageously with me at a bar. Then I rejected you to which you did not take very kindly, **then **I waltz in to your life with the news I'm dating your best friend. And since then we've argued and made up and argued and made up and seem unable to actually see eye to eye most of the time."

Sophie couldn't stop herself from chuckling, "Well when you put it like that … although you make it sound worse than it is. Plus I wouldn't say I flirted 'outrageously'."

"Mhhhmm, sure thing Soph."

Opening her mouth in mock shock, Sophie protested, "In what way was it outrageous?!"

_Flashback …_

_Sophie had been stood at the bar for approximately half an hour, sipping on her drink as the girl she'd come with was off dancing. Watching out the corner of her eye, Sophie could see that the girl was having too much fun to leave the dance floor any time soon, not to mention the fact she was getting quite a lot of attention, and so took it upon herself to get a little drunker before finding a new prospective bed mate for the night._

_Swirling the last of her drink and ice around the bottom of her glass, Sophie took a large gulp to finish it off before placing it back down on the bar and looking for someone to take her order. Before she had looked too far, her attention was grabbed by a girl stepping behind the bar towards a tall man in a suit._

"_I'm so so sorry I'm late Carl, honestly, I've had the night from hell."_

_The man folded his arms, looking somewhat annoyed, "You're over an hour late Sian, we're already one staff member down tonight without this."_

"_I know, like I said I'm really sorry, I got here as soon as I could."_

"_Just stop grovelling and get to work, you're late enough as it is. You better hope for a lot of tips tonight."_

_Letting out a sigh as she took off her jacket and threw it under the bar, Sian ran her fingers through her hair and tried to make herself look as decent as possible._

_Sophie had been watching the exchange carefully, unable to tear her eyes away from the blonde beauty who had just entered, and lost in her daze she had failed to notice that someone was speaking to her._

"_Anyone home in there?" Sian snapped her fingers impatiently in front of Sophie's face._

_Jumping slightly as Sian snapped her fingers, Sophie frowned playfully, "What kind of customer service is that?!"_

"_Well maybe if you were paying attention to me I wouldn't have had to do that." answered Sian, knowing she should be more well mannered but unable to control her bad mood._

_Sophie smirked back at the blonde, "You know, considering you have a lot of tips to make up, you might wanna try being more polite. Especially to me."_

_Raising her eyebrows sceptically, Sian rested her hands on the bar as she leant closer to Sophie, "And why 'especially to you'?"_

"_Because I tend to be a pretty generous tipper if the barmaid's as hot as you."_

_Sian snorted, "Oh … right … okay. I see how it is. Does that line generally work for you?"_

"_Does the moody, sullen look usually work for you?"_

"_Do you want a drink or not?" asked Sian, feeling herself start to lose patience._

"_How about you have one with me and then we can work on that attitude of yours?"_

_Sian sighed, "In case you hadn't noticed, I'm working."_

"_I had noticed," stated Sophie, folding her arms in front of her and leaning further forward, "But you don't seem too fussed on punctuality so I figured maybe you wouldn't mind a bit of casual skiving."_

"_Is that so?"_

_Sophie nodded her head, "So … what's your name?"_

"_You know my name."_

_Frowning back at the blonde, Sophie shook her head, "What makes you think that?"_

"_Well you were quite clearly eavesdropping on the conversation with my boss earlier."_

"_I wasn't eavesdropping," started Sophie, "You just got my attention."_

_Sian narrowed her eyes as she assessed the girl in front of her. Strong eye contact, a playful grin, a charming twinkle in her eyes and the fact she was leaning towards her. Sian shook her head and chuckled, resting her arms on the bar as she mirrored Sophie's position._

"_Come here." Sian raised her finger, beckoning Sophie closer as the brunette shuffled forward, their faces now just a few inches apart, "You're good. But I'm not going to sleep with you."_

"_You do think highly of yourself don't you?" asked Sophie, "Although don't get me wrong, I'd just love to be that lucky."_

"_Sorry to break it to you but there's only one person at this bar who fancies you, and it ain't me." started Sian, standing back up straight and smirking at the brunette, "Now, do you want a drink?"_

_Despite Sian's words, Sophie's grin was still placed firmly on he face, "Playing this the hard way then, eh? I like that."_

_Sian let out a sigh, "You're not gonna quit are you?"_

_Grinning again, Sophie shook her head, "I do like a challenge."_

_Sian rolled her eyes, "What's it gonna take for you to just order a drink?"_

"_Say you'll have one with me."_

"_I've already told you I'm wor-"_

"_Not right now." interrupted Sophie, "But some other time."_

_Sian sighed, rubbing her forehead as she tried to think of a solution. She had seen Sophie around before and knew exactly what the girl in front of her was like. Not to mention the fact she fended off the advances of people at the bar regularly so was fed up of it._

"_I'm all set thanks."_

_Sophie laughed, "Oh come on. I might be the best thing that ever happened to you and you won't even know because you wouldn't give me a chance."_

_Sian snorted, "I dunno about that, but you can keep dreaming."_

_Flashback over …_

"In retrospect, outrageous wasn't really the right word," started Sian, thinking for a second before continuing, "Relentless is probably more apt."

"I stand by everything I said."

Sian laughed, her eyes darting to the bathroom door as it opened and the two girls stepped out, "Like I said, relentless."

Both girls stood in the corridor, just looking at each other for a while with a grin on their face before Sian eventually cleared her throat and pointed towards the bathroom.

"You going in?"

Sophie smiled, gesturing into the toilet, "You go first."

"Sure?" asked Sian.

Sophie nodded, "I'm sure."

As Sian stepped towards the door, she leant towards Sophie and smirked, "Now if you'd been a little more like that, I might not have turned you down."

Patting the brunette on the stomach, Sian shot Sophie a grin before stepping into the bathroom and closing the door behind her, leaving a slightly taken aback Sophie behind.


	11. Chapter 11

After finishing in the bathroom and getting herself a fresh drink, Sophie quickly rejoined Craig in the living room who seemed to be bored of the girls they'd previously been chatting to and was now trying to get as drunk as humanly possible.

"Alright mate." greeted Sophie, standing next to her flatmate.

The pair scanned the flat for someone new to entertain them before Craig' eyes settled on a blonde in the corner and gave Sophie a nudge, "Hey Soph, isn't that your lass from a few weeks ago?"

Following Craig's line of sight, Sophie narrowed her eyes to get a better look at the girl in question and sure enough, he was right. Alex was stood in her living room with a group of her friends, having drinks. Some what impressed that he'd managed to remember Alex given he wasn't there for the breakfast disaster, Sophie took another large gulp of her drink as she watched the blonde throw her head back and let out a laugh.

"Bit weird innit." muttered Craig.

Sophie frowned, "How so?"

"Well yano … you shag this bird and then show her the door and a few weeks later she thinks it's perfectly acceptable to turn up to your house party without so much as a hello, kiss my arse, nothing."

Sophie nodded silently, letting her eyes linger on Alex a little longer. There was no denying the girl was attractive or that the two of them had had a good time together. At the bar when Sophie had picked up Alex, she had been more than happy to join Sophie, Craig and some other friends for drinks and eventually the two of them had been left to their own devices. The blonde was funny and easy to talk to, two qualities Sophie appreciated in a girl and the fact she was incredibly easy on the eye was a huge bonus.

Nudging Sophie again, Craig gestured over to Alex, "Go say hi."

"Why?" asked Sophie.

"Well it's a good opportunity for you to explore what we discussed a few weeks ago. Try and talk to this girl without just seeing it as a pulling opportunity. Get to know her." encouraged Craig.

Sophie frowned as the continued to observe Alex from across the room. She was obviously having fun with her friends and seemed to be on the tipsy side, a virtually empty glass of wine in one hand whilst she waved the other around animatedly to express the point she was making. Thinking back, Sophie knew that she'd had a good time with Alex and granted, the next morning had been somewhat of a disaster, but Sophie could only blame herself for that. Feeling utterly awkward and completely out of her comfort zone, she'd taken the cowards way out rather than getting to know Alex. However, it had continued to play on her mind ever since and she knew her friend was right. This was her opportunity to explore all of the things Sian had made her doubt.

Nodding her head slowly, Sophie turned back to her friend and managed a nervous smile, "You think she'll even want to speak to me after last time?"

Craig shrugged, "Only one way to find out."

Taking a deep breath, Sophie finished off the bottle of beer in her hand before heading off towards the kitchen. She grabbed a fresh bottle out the fridge before pouring a glass of wine and heading back into the living room. Her eyes settled on Alex again and she could feel nerves beginning to get the better of her. _This is ridiculous. Sophie Webster doesn't get nervous. Just pull yourself together, take her a drink and if she rejects you then who cares. There's plenty more girls in here that definitely wouldn't reject you. Get a grip._

Giving her head a shake, Sophie inhaled deeply before taking a few steps forward. With each step, Sophie's heart began to thump a little harder and as she closed the remaining distance between herself and her target, the brunette was sure her heart was about to break through her chest.

Adamant she wouldn't let her nerves show and putting on her usual front, Sophie broke out into a grin, nudging the blonde in the back with her forearm.

Alex turned, a number of emotions flashing across her features as her eyes fell on Sophie. What was initially shock that her one night stand had actually approached her, turned to annoyance, then happiness, then back to annoyance before finally settling on acceptance.

A small smirk tugging at her lips, Alex cocked an eyebrow at Sophie, "So … didn't think I'd hear from you again."

"Well …" started Sophie, grinning back at the blonde, "You are in my flat."

"Didn't expect you to come talk to me though."

Sophie nodded, extending one hand and offering up the glass of wine, "How about gettng you a drink?"

Taking the last sip from the glass in her hand, Alex placed the empty glass down before looking back at the brunette, "I think that was your opener last time Sophie, could do with some new moves."

Despite the comment, Sophie chuckled, "Oh I have plenty of moves, trust me you've only seen a handful."

"And I'll be seeing more?"

"If you're lucky." responded Sophie.

Alex scoffed, looking down at the glass in Sophie's hand and then back up to the blue eyes in front of her. Letting out a sigh of defeat, Alex took the glass from the brunette, Sophie's grin changing to one of pure victory. Despite Sophie's some what cocky nature, Alex couldn't deny the attraction. Sophie was indeed a gorgeous woman and even with the cockiness, still had a charming and intoxicating presence. When Sophie's eyes were on you and she lay the flirting on thick, very few girls were able to escape. Alex knew that no matter what she did, if the brunette wanted her in her bed that night, that's exactly where she would be.

"So … you gonna tell me what your game is then?" asked Alex, peering at Sophie over the rim of her glass as she took a sip.

Sophie cocked an eyebrow as a smirk began to tug at her lips, "Game?"

"Mhhhm." started Alex, taking a gulp of the wine as she maintained eye contact with the brunette, "The bringing me a drink and talking to me after shooing me from your flat not long ago."

Internally cringing at the memory, Sophie cleared her throat, "Look I'm sorry about that. I behaved like a bit of a twat."

Alex scoffed causing Sophie to grin and continue, "Okay a lot of a twat."

"I guess the drink is a good way of starting to make it up to me." stated Alex, her smile widening a little.

Sophie grinned, "A start? What else would you have me do like?"

Looking at the grin on the brunettes face, Alex knew exactly what Sophie was getting at but merely shrugged her shoulders, "You'll see."

Across the room, Craig was pulled from his conversation with a girl he was hoping to charm into his bed that night as Laura and Sian arrived by his side, the red head turning him on the spot to face her.

"Is that who I think it is?" asked Laura, nodding towards Sophie and Alex in the corner.

Craig followed Laura's line of sight, his eyes eventually settling on his housemate. Nodding his head, Craig turned back to Laura, "If you think it's the member of the exclusive Sophie Webster breakfast club then you would be correct."

Sian turned her head and watched Sophie just as she leant in a little closer to Alex, resting her mouth beside the blonde's ear as she whispered something that caused Alex's lips to turn up into a smirk. As Sophie rested her hand on Alex's arm, stepping back as the two made eye contact, Sian felt a twinge in her stomach. She wasn't sure what effect watching Sophie was having on her but she was certain she didn't like it.

Turning back to her girlfriend and Craig, Sian cleared her throat and tried to sound casual, "I thought Sophie ditched her?"

"She did." started Craig, taking a sip of his beer before continuing, "But apparently Alex turned up to the party tonight and I managed to convince Webby to go talk to her."

"Why?" asked Sian, a bit too loudly for her own liking.

A little drunk and not thinking about whether Sophie would want her business repeating or not, Craig shrugged, "I think she needs it. She was saying how she felt like she should be trying more than one night stands with girls."

Laura scrunched up her features, "But Webster has never been interested in anything more than sex with a girl?"

"Seems our Sophie is growing up," started Craig, grinning at his housemate, "Although I'm not one hundred percent sure why. Something to do with some bird messing with her."

Sian snapped her head back to Craig and away from watching Sophie, "Some bird?"

Craig nodded, "I dunno. Some girl seems to have gotten under her skin and is making her feel bad for just having one night stands. She didn't really say that much about it. Just that it's not a girl she's dating and that she's said a few things that seem to have bothered her."

Sian felt that uncomfortable twinge in the pit of her stomach again as she let Craig's words sink in. Could it be possible she was the girl that Craig was referring to? Of course Sian was aware she had said some pretty harsh things to Sophie with regards to her love life but surely it couldn't have bothered the brunette that much. Or could it? Thinking over Sophie's behaviour since the two of them had become reacquainted it couldn't be denied that Sophie had started acting strangely. And it did seem to be after each time the two of them had one of their run ins. Sian's stomach began to churn more violently as she considered the prospect she could be the girl who had gotten under Sophie's skin so much. _What does it mean? Why did I even get so involved? Why has it upset her so much? Why does it actually bother me that she's trying to have more than a one night stand with Alex all because of what I said?_

The many unanswered questions circled Sian's head and she could feel herself needing something to help her forget about them. Excusing herself from the group, she made her way towards the kitchen in the hope of finding a strong drink, pleased to see that it wasn't as busy as it had been earlier in the night with only two occupants in the door way.

Sian rested her palms against the kitchen counter and leant against it, closing her eyes as she took in a deep breath. There was absolutely no reason for her to be so effected by the information Craig had just given her however Sian knew something strange and definitely dangerous was happening in her head. She shouldn't even be thinking about what Sophie was up to yet for some unknown reason she couldn't get the imagine of Sophie and that girl out of her head. The way the brunette had slowly leant in towards Alex, her lips turned up in a knowing smirk as if she was completely aware of the effect she could have on women. Sian frowned, that arrogance could be so annoying and was made even more so by the fact that it also made Sophie all the more attractive. Sian shook her head. She couldn't think about it. She couldn't think about Sophie.

Turning on the spot, Sian opened her eyes, ready to grab herself a drink however upon turning around, she was shocked by a presence just behind her and let out a rather girly shriek.

"Jesus fucking christ Sian." Sophie winced as the sound escaped the blonde's lips, "Surely I'm not that scary."

"Don't you know it's rude to sneak up on people?!" snapped Sian, pressing her hand to her chest as she tried to regulate her heart beat.

Sophie held her hands up in defence, "Well sorry but I didn't exactly sneak up. I came to say hi and you were in your own little world."

Sian glanced behind Sophie, seeing no one there before looking back at the brunette, "Where's your girlfriend?"

Sophie rolled her eyes, "I don't have a girlfriend."

"You know who I mean."

Letting out a sigh, Sophie pushed the hair back from her face, "She's in the bathroom. I'm just getting another drink."

"Well I won't keep you." muttered Sian, going to side step Sophie but was stopped as the brunette grabbed her arm.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." sighed Sian, pulling her arm free but making no attempt to walk away.

"Sian." started Sophie.

"Stop." interrupted Sian, locking eyes with the brunette as she gave Sophie a serious look.

Sophie groaned in frustration, "Look what have I done now?"

"You haven't done anything." grumbled Sian, "Not everything's about you yano."

Frowning back at the blonde, Sophie dropped her hand to her side so it was no longer near Sian, "What … I … Being a bit harsh don't ya think?"

"Not really." murmured Sian, dropping her eyes to the ground.

Not entirely sure what she was doing but acting on impulse, Sophie reached forward, brushing her fingers over Sian's cheek and tilting the blonde's face up towards her. Locking eyes with Sian, Sophie didn't lower her hand and instead kept it pressed against her face, searching Sian's eyes for some kind of clue as to what she was feeling.

About to lean into the touch but catching herself before she did, Sian stepped back away from the brunette's hand and shook her head, "I can't."

Opening her mouth to speak, Sophie didn't get the chance to say anything before the blonde turned on the spot and quickly left the kitchen.


End file.
